Sookie Summoned
by HellooHelloo
Summary: Sookie / Eric. - Sookie left Bon Temps to live drama-free. When forced to return, she must confront unresolved romantic tension and ongoing vampire manipulations. - Eventual romance (focusing on the chase) that utilises an otherwise non-linear combination of True Blood characters and plot devices.
1. Chapter 1

Rescuing my brother from vampire incarceration was not on my bucket list.

Unfortunately, it was something I now needed to do.

There had been no intention to leave Dallas to return to Bon Temps, but Jason's stupidity saw me on a mission, sitting behind the wheel of his truck.

My fingers strummed impatiently against the steering wheel. I gave my name to the gruff voice over the intercom and waited for the electric gates to open. When the gates had opened wide enough, I stepped on the accelerator and drove into the Compton estate.

The veranda-wrapped house sat amongst a landscape of manicured lawns and trees. It was a mansion with all the charm of any grand Southern restoration.

I parked inelegantly along the carriage driveway. Jason's truck was out-of-place amongst this storybook facade.

Taking a deep breath, I took what I hoped were steady, assertive steps up towards the house.

The doors swung open before I had a chance to ring the doorbell.

"Miss Stackhouse?" An attractive strawberry-blonde offered me a coolly polite smile. Despite the Louisiana heat, she wore a full tailored pantsuit.

"Yes, I'm Sookie Stackhouse," I replied, trying to imbue my voice with the same level of confident professionalism.

"I'm Katerina Pellham, Bill Compton's executive officer," she said. "Mr Compton anticipated that you would be here as soon as possible, and asked that I greet you upon arrival."

I did not need to listen to Katerina's thoughts to know that Bill had foreseen my attempt to rescue Jason during daytime, and that she had been instructed to thwart this.

"Please come in, Miss Stackhouse."

I entered the house. The last time I had been inside, it had been rather rundown. Extensive remodelling and redecorating had since taken place. I tried to keep a straight face as I took in the gleaming wooden floorboards, expensive furniture and, of all things to happen upon in Bill's entrance hall, a zebra skin rug.

"Please have a seat, Miss Stackhouse."

I was ushered through to the living room. Katerina and I sat opposite each other on brown suede lounges.

She smiled that coolly polite smile again.

"Would you care for a refreshment, Miss Stackhouse?"

"No thank you." I did not care for her repeatedly parroting 'Miss Stackhouse' at me, as much as I did not care for any iced tea.

"So I am advised that you used to live in Bon Temps?" It was clear from Katerina's thoughts that she knew exactly where I used to live, along with where I currently lived and other vital statistics. She had done her research the night before.

Nothing had revealed my ability to hear people's thoughts, or my equally abnormal fairy heritage; nevertheless, I was bothered that Bill kept a file on me.

"Yes. I grew up in Bon Temps."

I was awarded with another coolly polite smile.

Non-productive silence set in. I had been raised to be friendly to others, but this was no occasion to get into the spirit of Southern hospitality. I had had enough. I was only here for Jason. It was time to get to the point.

"So I suppose you've been ordered to entertain me until it gets dark enough for Bill to rise?"

Katerina's initial impression of me had been to dismiss me as a blonde belle in a sundress. She now looked at me with fresh intrigue.

There was a pause while she considered how to respond. She eventually nodded.

"Yes. Mr Compton will speak to you at nightfall. Until then, your brother, Jason Stackhouse, remains in custody."

"This is ridiculous," I retorted. "You have no right to keep Jason a prisoner!"

"Mr Stackhouse was high on V until only a short time ago. He is now sleeping. It is in his best interests to remain in custody until we can be certain that he is fully recovered from the incident."

I was irritated not only by Katerina Pellham's matter-of-fact attitude, but also at Jason for getting himself, and now me, into this predicament. Or 'incident', as she put it.

"Fine," I said, allowing some of this irritation to show. "I will wait to speak to Bill. After that, I'm leaving with my brother."

Katerina was too professional to look relieved; although, she seemed content enough with my answer.

"I am glad you are being reasonable, Miss Stackhouse." Then, as if she needed to cover all her bases like any accountable employee, she added: "Please note that only Mr Compton has the authority to release your brother."

With the reality of the matter set straight, she left me to entertain myself in the living room. I did not bother leaving the room, as no doubt there were security cameras trained upon me.

After what seemed like a lifetime of repeatedly flicking through some decorative coffee table books, she returned. A glance at my watch revealed that just over three hours had passed. Through the windows, I saw that the day had transitioned to early night.

I was agitated and I was ready.

So too, it seemed, was Bill.

"Miss Stackhouse, Mr Compton will see you now."

Katerina led me through the house to Bill's study.

She knocked once.

"Enter." I immediately recognised Bill's voice.

Katerina opened the door and stepped aside to allow me to enter. She did not follow me into the study; instead, closing the door.

The study was furnished as lavishly as the rest of the house, in neutral shades of mainly charcoal and black. Behind a large desk with curved metal legs sat Bill Compton. Vampire of nearly 200 years. King of Louisiana. My former lover.

Dark haired, blue eyed and pale. He wore a formal business suit and tie that, I suppose, befitted his newly-royal status, even though he had never been a t-shirt and shorts type of guy.

"Good evening, Sookie." He rose and walked around the desk to me.

I was not sure what to do. Under the circumstances, and in the context of our history, it seemed neither appropriate to greet each other warmly, nor immediately clash figurative swords. For Jason's sake, I needed to keep a businesslike composure.

We ended up simply eyeing each other.

"I have come to get Jason," I announced, ignoring Bill's motion for me to sit. He returned to his position behind the desk.

"I see there will be no pleasantries between us," he grimaced. "Sookie, I am not sure that you understand the gravity of the situation."

"I received your detailed phone message and immediately flew out from Dallas. I understand the situation enough to know that you better let Jason go."

The grimace deepened. He seemed to have become even graver than before.

"Sookie, your brother was caught not only high on V, but also with a significant stockpile of the blood. It is my responsibility to ensure that V dealing does not happen in my kingdom. I cannot let Jason go without thorough questioning – and he's currently too exhausted to talk."

"Then why give me the impression that I could just come and collect him today?!" After waiting around for so long, rash temper got the best of me. So much for keeping a businesslike composure.

"I called you out of courtesy. I thought you should know the trouble Jason has got himself into since you left Bon Temps." When Bill smiled coldly at me, I realised where Katerina had picked up the habit.

"And what exactly does 'thorough questioning' involve?" I asked.

"Nothing sinister, Sookie. I just want answers. Your brother's not smart enough to be the brains behind any elaborate V operation."

"Where is he?!" It was rare times such as this that I would not have minded being able to hear the thoughts of vampires.

"He's safe and unhurt, except for some self-inflicted bruises he sustained during his V trip." Bill took an electronic tablet from his desk and angled it towards me. On the screen, showing real time surveillance camera footage, I made out my brother's sleeping form, covered by a blanket.

"I want to see him."

Bill shook his head.

"It's no use. He was given a sedative to assist him in peacefully sobering up. He is fast asleep and will be until well into tomorrow. Come back then, Sookie. You can do nothing for him at the moment."

I was angry at how Bill was deflecting everything all the while playing the sensible vampire. He had always been like this, but now, as king, he seemed pompous even.

"I will be back first thing tomorrow! You better not hurt my brother!"

He nodded, too non-committal for my liking.

"I anticipate that the interrogation will be complete by midnight tomorrow. It must happen during the night, as I wish to be present. Should you wish to, you may also attend. Maybe you can read your brother's mind and get some answers?"

I hoped my glare was withering enough to let Bill know that there was no way I would be helping him interrogate Jason.

His back straightened.

"Good evening, Sookie," he said tersely.

I left the study.

Without seeing Katerina; although, I am sure she was around somewhere, I left the house. The engine of Jason's truck was loud enough to give me some sort of petty satisfaction as I gunned it out of the Compton estate.

The truck sped easily down the deserted Bon Temps road. I was usually a more careful driver, but frustration consumed me.

I felt ultimately helpless, a feeling I had experienced often in the past in my direct dealings with vampires. Thus why Dallas life was so pleasantly mundane.

I wiped away the tears that were pooling in the corner of my eyes and tried to collect my thoughts.

First thing was to get through the night. I would return to the Compton estate in the morning and somehow ensure Jason was released.

I was still strategising as I caught sight of a tall figure in the distance. At first I thought the darkness was playing tricks on my eyes, or maybe I was hallucinating from the trials of the day.

As I drew closer, it was clear that some fool stood in the middle of the road.

I beeped the horn several times to no effect.

The figure did not budge.

When it became apparent that I was rapidly at risk of causing an accident, I sunk my foot upon the brake. The truck, beloved by my brother, but irregularly serviced, was slow to respond.

I actually forgot about Jason as I realised the truck was not going to stop in time.

My eyes closed in horror.

I screamed.

The sickening impact of collision that I had anticipated did not occur.

Instead, I heard a strange, contained thud.

My eyes opened in shock.

The figure, it appeared, had hit the truck, rather than the truck hitting the figure. Two long, muscular arms were braced against the hood of the truck, indenting the bodywork. Extraordinary strength had brought the truck to a tidy halt.

I followed the line of the arms. He leaned casually against against the truck, dark blonde head bowed.

A new fear struck me.

I exhaled the breath I had been holding post-scream.

The head slowly raised, revealing the lean, handsome face I remembered all too well.

Blue eyes. Chiselled cheekbones. A mouth that was twisted at the corners into a mocking sneer.

"You."

And having spoken that single word, Eric Northman's fangs unsheathed.

* * *

_._

* * *

_Hello! Thank you for taking the time to read my 'story starter'._

_I love the Sookie / Eric pairing, but hope that my vaguely-OOC portrayal of Sookie is more level-headed / less self-righteous! I am not sticking to straightforward canon; although, the general gist remains._

_The intent is that I will update this story routinely while I try to get back the ability to 'write for fun'! Feel free to make any suggestions about what you want to read - and happy to respond to constructive criticism!_


	2. Chapter 2

I stared at him framed in the windshield.

Part of my brain disbelieved that it was Eric, whereas another subconscious part had sort of expected him to turn up.

I assumed that he was here in response to my presence in Louisiana, as well as my haphazard emotions. Damn our ongoing blood bond.

He moved from the front of the truck to the driver's side and looked at me through the open window.

"Sookie Stackhouse," he mused in that low, enigmatic voice.

His fangs retracted neatly.

"It has been a while."

He wore a singlet and slim-leg jeans, both black and snug against his masculine physique. Moonlight illuminated his blonde hair and pale skin.

He was gorgeous. Sinfully gorgeous.

I wanted to punch him.

"You idiot!" I exclaimed. "I could have hit you! You might already be dead, but you could have injured me!" My own voice seemed high-pitched and foreign. I preferred to attribute my frazzled nerves to the anticlimax of the non-collision rather than Eric Northman's presence.

He dusted off his hands, as if halting a moving vehicle in the middle of the road was a mindless task.

"Spare me the hysteria. There was no chance of harm to either of us."

He reached into the truck and shifted the gearstick to park. In a vampire movement faster than my eyes could track, he also snatched the keys out of the ignition, unclasped my seatbelt and opened the door.

His hand grasped my shoulder and pulled me from the truck.

"Eric! What do you think you're doing?!" I stumbled, unbalanced, onto the road. I was shaking with unspent adrenaline.

His hand grasped my shoulder once more, this time to steady to me.

I shook him off.

"Eric, I am not in the mood."

I moved to get back in the car, but he shot in front of me with vampire speed.

"That's no way to treat an old friend, Sookie."

"Don't get cute with me, Eric. Just don't." I had been at work early to open the store. By midday, I had been on a plane from Dallas. Factoring in the time waiting around for Bill, it had already been a long day. Encountering Eric was the last straw.

Whereas Bill Compton was fairly predictable, Eric Northman was not. Sure, Eric was much older than Bill, having been turned over one thousand years ago. He was also the Vampire Sheriff of Area 5 and another former lover.

Jeez. Two unconventional reunions with ex-boyfriends in under an hour when I had not even rescued Jason yet.

Bon Temps certainly did not disappoint.

"I have to go," I said. Focusing on my brother was the best way forward.

Eric ignored me, refusing to move out of my way.

"So Sookie, what brings you back to Bon Temps on this balmy summer night? You seem to be in quite a hurry driving that fast."

"Really, Eric?" I sighed. I was wise to him. He was not one for idle chitchat.

He merely smirked.

I tried another tactic.

"Jason has been taken prisoner by Bill." If anything, perhaps Eric could assist me.

"And you've come back to save your brother?" he guessed.

I nodded impatiently.

"I want him released unharmed. I will be at Bill's tomorrow to make sure this happens. What chance is there that you could do something to help?"

A blonde brow rose.

"You want my help?"

"It might speed things along," I conceded, swallowing my pride. "Maybe if you told Bill that Jason was no threat, he wouldn't buy into there being some crazy V conspiracy going on?"

Another smirk.

"You don't believe there's a V operation occurring in this little town of yours? Bill might be king, but I am still sheriff, Sookie. Who do you think picked up your brother?"

"You caught Jason?!"

"I make it my business to be informed about anything to do with vampire blood in my territory," he replied smoothly. "Including the users. I apprehended your brother and gave him over to Bill's custody last night."

"Why would you do that? Jason might get himself into dumb things, but he's harmless!" Was it wrong of me to think that, in light of our history, Eric might have given me and, by association, my brother a break?

On second thoughts, perhaps it was.

"It suited me to have Bill take your brother." He reached out and examined a lock of my hair. The arrogance of the gesture was not lost on me. I swot his hand away.

"Why?"

His predatory smile gave an almost cruel cast to his handsomeness.

"Because, Sookie, now that Bill has a Stackhouse, I might get back my very own."

I flinched.

Then I steeled myself against him.

"We've been over this, Eric. I have no interest whatsoever in being your puppet." I placed my hands upon my hips and tried to stare him down. Or up. In flats, I barely reached his shoulder.

His blue eyes were shadowed by the night, but they returned my stare unblinkingly.

"We shall see."

"This is a passing visit," I warned, familiar with his high-handedness. "I have a job back in Dallas that needs me the day after tomorrow. Once Jason is released, I'm out of here."

He stepped closer. I arched my back to preserve my personal space, but did not give him the satisfaction of backing away.

"You still smell like wheat, honey and sunlight," he said.

"I'm sure you can get that in a cereal." I rolled my eyes.

But he was not easily dissuaded.

"Did you miss me, Sookie?"

"Pfft."

He must have interpreted the unintelligible sound as dismissive. My head flung backwards as he suddenly seized me. His hand threaded through my hair to still me at the nape of my neck.

"We share enough of a blood bond for me to know the truth," he murmured. His voice had shifted to a tone almost glamour-worthy. Good thing I was unaffected.

His hand lowered to my back. The caress was cool and deceptively soft. His other hand slid over my hip.

"Sookie."

I could not deny a physical attraction to Eric, especially noting our blood bond. This alone meant that he affected me much more than Bill. Being hip-to-hip with him still, after everything, set my body on edge. I felt his intent. He wanted blood and sex, even in the middle of the road.

I came to my senses. It would be pure self-indulgence to give in. That and self-sabotage for sure.

"Eric. _Let me go_."

We stared at each other.

His hands fell away.

To my chagrin, his head tipped backwards in quiet, mocking laughter. Pearl white teeth, with the hint of fangs, flashed in the darkness.

His expression eventually returned to sarcastic solemnity.

"I felt your presence here; however, you do not seem to require my roadside service."

"I don't," I confirmed. "Go back to Shreveport and your bar."

I gave him a wide berth and walked back to the truck. He watched as I climbed into the driver's seat, firmly closed the door and secured my seatbelt.

"Drive safe, Sookie Stackhouse."

"Goodbye Eric."

I went to turn on the engine, but realised that he still had the keys.

He dangled them at me.

"Oh, give them to me."

I held out my hand through the window.

"What time shall I meet you at Bill's to put in the good word?" he asked conversationally, dropping the keys into my palm.

I shot him an exasperated look.

"Just forget it, Eric. I can deal with this on my own."

He mock-bowed as I started up the engine.

I drove away and left him standing there.

When I glanced back at the road from the rear-view mirror a moment or so later, he was gone.


	3. Chapter 3

A quick inspection of the pigsty called Jason's house was enough to make me drive on to Gran's house.

I was pleasantly surprised by how fresh the interior was, considering I had not expected much from Jason when I entrusted him with its upkeep.

My brother had always had a sentimental preference for the house that had been our parents'. In contrast, Gran's house was home to me. Or had been, pre-Dallas.

Despite the nostalgic comfort of my surrounds, I slept fitfully and rose too early the next morning to have had any proper duration of sleep.

I returned in the truck to the Compton estate.

Katerina Pellham greeted me at the door. Her thoughts revealed that she had been expecting me yet again.

Once inside the house, I refused to be put in the living room.

"I want to see Jason," I told her.

"He's awake now," she said, unruffled. "I'll take you to him now."

I was led through a series of modern hallways all subject to security clearances.

"I can't believe Bill has a built-in prison," I muttered, eyeing this new addition to the house dubiously.

"As king, Mr Compton has had to equip his residence with a number of measures that reflect his responsibilities," Katerina said. She sounded rather proud.

Jason was being held in what seemed like one of many cell-like rooms. When Katerina unlocked the door, he was lying upon a cot bed.

He sat up hastily.

"Sookie?!"

"I'll leave you two to it," Katerina said. She closed the door upon us; although, I also heard the click of the lock.

"Oh, fuck, Sookie," Jason bemoaned, falling back onto the cot. "I've done it this time, haven't I?"

"Get up, Jason!" I hissed, aware that the security cameras surveilling the room would also be listening in.

"It wasn't my V, I swear, Sook," Jason said. He looked at me with puppy dog eyes that I was immune to by now.

"So whose was it, Jason?" I sighed. I gave up on trying to censor our conversation.

"I took the fall for Amy. Sure, I had a bit of V last night, but it was her stash, not mine." He ran a hand through his dirty blonde hair.

"Jason! You broke up with Amy ages ago!"

I assumed he was talking about Amy Burley, a girl he had once been in a casual relationship with.

He looked at me sheepishly.

"Well, yeah. But we somehow ended up back together last night."

"I thought she went back to college?!"

"Um...she kind of took your job at Merlotte's when you went to Dallas." Jason looked further discomforted.

I sighed deeply.

It was going to be another one of those days.

We spent many hours locked in the room, waiting for Bill to rise. I picked halfheartedly at the meals a guard served us. Jason ate with an enthusiasm not really befitting someone being kept prisoner.

Finally, when I had reached breaking point, the door opened.

"Mr Compton has risen," Katerina said. "Follow me."

Outside of the room, four armed guards awaited. With Katerina in the lead, Jason and I were escorted back to the living room.

Bill sat upon one of the lounges.

"Sookie," he said, actually smiling at me. "For your sake, I thought it would be better if we conducted the questioning in more comfortable surrounds."

"How gentlemanly of you," I snapped. "We've been locked up in that prison cell for the entire day."

He frowned.

"You chose to be with your brother today. He required a secure room."

"Shall we begin?" Katerina cut in. She sounded curt. I realised that it was because she was sleeping with Bill and did not like him interacting with me, his ex-girlfriend. Thoughts never lie.

Bill and I were silent as Jason recounted meeting up with Amy, doing some V, having sex, and being caught by Eric with Amy nowhere to be found.

I hoped Bill remembered that Jason was not sophisticated enough to make up the otherwise unseemly tale.

There was a loud rap at the door. Katerina paused in her note-taking to look at Bill. He nodded at her, who, in turn, nodded at one of the guards. The guard went off to answer the door.

I was not sure whether to be relieved or dismayed when Eric strolled into the room. The guard trailed behind helplessly.

"Well, this is quite a party," Eric drawled, surveying us all. He looked to me last, blue eyes travelling leisurely from my top to toe, even though a single glance would have sufficed considering his enhanced vampire eyesight.

"Eric? What are you doing here?" Bill seemed taken aback.

Eric smiled with careless bravado.

"Didn't Sookie tell you I was coming? She asked me here."

I did not bother to protest the over-exaggeration. No doubt he was trying to bait me.

"No, I was not aware of this," Bill said gruffly. He and Eric had never been particularly friendly due to a number of factors, not least their contrasting personalities.

It seemed things had not changed.

"Surely it's appropriate that I'm here," Eric continued. "I did catch Stackhouse in the act, remember?"

Jason's wince was confirmation enough.

"Jason is adamant of having no knowledge about a V operation in the area," Bill said. "He claims it was not his vampire blood."

"I swear it!" Jason squirmed. "Just like when you caught me, I told you it wasn't mine! I only had a tiny vial. I don't know where the hell all that other stuff came from!"

Eric pinned my brother with a stare.

"Why don't we have a private chat, old sport?" Eric turned away from Jason to Bill.

They exchanged a look I could not interpret.

"Watch them," Bill said to Katerina and the guards hovering about the room. Seeing my scowl, he corrected himself.

"I mean, watch him."

Jason slumped forlornly.

Bill and Eric went into the study. In the moment before shutting the door, the latter caught my eye and held it steadily.

I hoped that he knew what he was doing.

The rest of us were silent as we awaited their return. Katerina stood, arms crossed, to the side of the room while the guards trained their guns upon Jason and, to a lesser extent, me.

I listened to the thoughts about the room. Nothing was out of the ordinary in light of the circumstances. Jason's thoughts were a mishmash of desperate prayers. He was also guessing whether flirting with Katerina would get him anywhere. Typical.

When they finally emerged from the study, Bill looked sombre and Eric looked suspiciously upbeat.

Bill cleared his throat.

"You may leave, Sookie," he announced. He glanced at Jason and cleared his throat a second time.

"You may leave with your brother."

The guards lowered their guns.

I had thought that Katerina was unflappable; however, her mouth was open with surprise. She was wondering what on earth had happened in the office. I wondered too, but did not want to question any decision that saw Jason being released.

I heard his mental whoops of joy.

I had to get him out of here before he did something else stupid enough to land him back in vampire custody.

Ignoring the guards, who prodded us along with their guns, I hurried Jason out of the house.

"I'll drive," I said, making him get into the passenger seat of the truck.

I was about to slide into the driver's seat when a hand caught my wrist.

I knew it was Eric before I looked up. The pit of my stomach housed a sinking feeling.

"You owe me, Sookie," he said. To his credit, he refrained from smugness. His handsome face merely looked...serious.

I could have dealt with a smirk better.

"What do you mean?" I replied.

"Did you really think you could just walk out of here with your brother?" He did not let go of my wrist. Instead, his thumb smoothed over the skin, seeking my pulse, as only a vampire could find alluring.

"What do you want, Eric?" I sighed, yanking away my arm.

His grin was wicked.

"Why don't you take your brother home, Sookie. I'll speak to you tomorrow." With fake courtesy, he opened the door to the truck and gestured for me to sit.

"I'll be in Dallas tomorrow, in case you have forgotten."

I got into the truck and tried to close the door, but he stopped me.

"You'll just have to cancel those plans. We're having dinner tomorrow night."

"Dinner?" I echoed. "No, we are not. I'm going back to Dallas, Eric. I'm done here." I tossed a pointed glance at Jason, who lolled groggily in the passenger seat, oblivious to everything.

Eric shrugged elegantly.

"So you were able to release your brother. With my help. As you asked me to. You're in my debt, Sookie Stackhouse."

His eyes were an intense blue. I stubbornly looked away.

"While I am grateful for anything you may have done back there, let's just leave it at that."

The winsome smile I forced at him was not working.

"If you want your idiot brother to remain safe and sound, I would suggest that you be waiting outside your house, in one of those pretty dresses of yours, at 8 o'clock tomorrow night." He closed the door of the truck and hit the bonnet lightly, as if signalling his permission for me to leave.

"You're being a bully, Eric," I warned. My smile was replaced by a more natural frown.

He arched a blonde brow.

"Indeed."


	4. Chapter 4

I felt sorry enough for Jason to cook him breakfast the next day.

"You staying now, Sookie?" He glanced around Gran's house. "I didn't think you would come back here."

"No, I'm going back to Dallas as soon as possible," I said, piling more toast onto his plate.

"Oh, okay." He went back to eating, easily satisfied.

After breakfast, he left and drove the truck to his house, promising to come back should I need a lift.

I needed a lift if I went to the airport, as planned.

Instead, I found myself on the phone, making a last minute excuse to my boss about why I would not be able to make my shifts for the next two days.

I next called Jason. I asked him whether I could spend the day at his house.

Doing his laundry and cleaning was not at all what I would call fun, but, at least, the banal tasks occupied my mind.

It was the third day in a row that I waited around for a vampire. Glutton for punishment much?

Jason dropped me back at Gran's house just as the sun was setting.

"What are you doing to yourself, Sook?" he asked, with more solemn clarity than I had ever believed possible. I tended to take note on the rare occasions he applied himself to the 'protective big brother' role. Surely I was making some sort of mistake if even Jason was picking up on it?!

"It's just dinner," I shrugged, outwardly nonchalant.

"With Eric Northman," he shuddered.

Once Jason had gone, I began to get ready, which really meant that I stood under the shower for far too long, trying to pull my thoughts together.

I wanted to rationalise going to dinner with Eric as the key to ensuring Jason's safety, but the pull of our blood bond, not to mention our history, meant there would always be more to it.

I put on the last dress I had hurriedly packed in my overnight bag. It was a halter-neck style in lavender cotton more suited to daywear, but befitting the 'pretty sundress' comment.

At 8 o'clock, the sleek, red sports car pulled up in the driveway.

I had been waiting, and dashed outside before any awkward front door greetings occurred.

Eric did not have an invitation to the house. It had been rescinded _back then_.

Vampire speed meant he still reached me before I stepped off the porch. I came to an abrupt standstill in order to avoid crashing into his chest.

"Hello Sookie."

He stood with his hands held behind his back, towering over me. He wore a typical Eric outfit: a sleek, black jacket; charcoal t-shirt with a low V-neck; and black, fitted jeans.

His gorgeousness made me all the more wary of him.

"Hi."

We walked over to the car. His hand unnecessarily guided me at the elbow. When I tried to pull away, he gripped me more firmly.

"Some date this is already turning out to be," I muttered.

"A date?" His smile was sly. "I thought this was merely you beginning to repay your debt. Would you like it to be a date, Sookie?"

"This is the total repayment of any so-called debt," I corrected, focusing only on the words that suited me.

He opened the passenger side door of the car for me. Begrudgingly, I slid into the seat, not buying into any courtesy that came from him.

"Where are you taking me?" I asked, after a few minutes of driving. I was fine with silence, but curiosity, or perhaps caution, compelled me to speak.

"Where are you hoping I am taking you?" he asked in turn.

I wrinkled my nose.

"It better not be Fangtasia."

His eyes moved sideways from the road to my face.

"Doesn't Fangtasia hold sweet memories for you, Sookie?"

I bristled, struck by sudden bittersweetness.

"No."

Despite the high speed we were travelling at, and other cars being on the road, it was a long time before he looked away from me.

We ended up in Shreveport, at a restaurant I had never been to before. It was candlelit, expensive and patronised by customers both human and vampire. We, or at least Eric, attracted many stares as the maitre'd ushered us towards a table at the back. I assumed that the vampires recognised him as their sheriff, while the thoughts of the humans were simply admiring.

Our waiter had been informed that Eric was some sort of VIP. We were greeted with an effusiveness that grated on my nerves.

Eric refused the offer of Tru Blood.

I skimmed the menus and purposefully ordered the most expensive wine, starter and entree.

He did not comment. In fact, he seemed amused.

The wine arrived first. I wanted to finish off the entire glass; however, I forced myself to take a dainty sip. Relying upon Dutch courage would have been too obvious.

"You have made the right choice to stay in Louisiana, Sookie," he said.

I set down my glass and frowned at him.

"I might have shown up tonight, but I'm still leaving tomorrow."

"You're staying," he reinforced smoothly. "You need to uphold your end of the deal we made with Bill Compton."

"We?" I balked. "You had no right to involve me in any deal you made with Bill."

"Good King Bill may be under the impression that you are my human once more." This was delivered with an unapologetic smirk.

My expression must have been horrified enough, for he continued.

"Jason is to go free while you help me find out who is behind the V operation. Here in Louisiana. For as long as it takes."

"I have a job in Dallas, Eric. A new life."

We both spoke quietly, but I lacked the cool superiority he pulled off so well. In my case, I controlled my voice because the alternative would have seen me rant in public.

He leant forward across the table. Like going in for the kill.

"If I had not made such a deal with Bill, your brother would still be languishing in Bill's prison. In my area, I know Jason Stackhouse well as a buyer and user of vampire blood. _And that's a very grave offence_."

"Oh, leave Jason out of this!" I hissed. "You're just using him to work this situation to your advantage!"

His blue eyes turned icy and narrowed.

"Your brother remains a person of interest. If you return to Dallas, I will see that Jason is accommodated in the basement of Fangtasia while he assists my investigation instead."

There had been a time when I thought his threats meant the end of the world. I had since learned to take each one as they came. This one, granted, was typically ruthless, but my temper always came before fear.

"So what, along the lines of this blackmail, in order for you to leave Jason alone, I'm supposed to just drop everything and be your little detective partner?"

"Employee," he corrected. "Or more, of course."

"That will never happen," I shot back. "I am no longer yours, despite what you have tricked Bill into thinking. When I left you, I meant it. I meant _everything_ I said."

The waiter arrived with my starter.

I attacked the grilled lobster salad aggressively.

Eric, on the other hand, reclined in his chair.

"Relax, Sookie," he murmured. "Things will go to plan." With vampire nonchalance, his dark intensity had given way to easy charisma.

"Yeah, your plan or mine?" I muttered, unwilling to let go of my agitation.

He did not answer; although, his smile was calculating.

I countered this with another frown.

* * *

.

* * *

_I've noticed some reviews point out that Eric seems mean etc. - my take is that a soppy Eric straight up would be no fun haha!_

_I did consider having him set Jason up with the V; however, too many people guessed it, so I will have to come up with something a little bit different!_

_Notwithstanding this, rather than being plot-focused, this story is more about coming up with ongoing, somewhat-believable scenarios through which Eric and Sookie can interact - although, I definitely want to refrain from the story being a "by the 1,000th word, they're in bed and it's happily ever after" cop out!_

_[I'm back at work as of tomorrow, and hope to upload updates about twice a week. x]_


	5. Chapter 5

I returned home.

Home being Dallas. A neat, single storey, three bedroom home in suburbia.

The moment the taxi pulled up in the driveway, the front door swung open.

Alcide, in one of his well-worn check shirts and blue jeans, stepped out onto the porch. It was early in the afternoon, I had hoped he would be at work.

He sipped a mug of coffee.

"Hey Alcide," I greeted, falsely upbeat as I approached him. This was after I had procrastinated for far too long by paying the driver in a majority of coins.

"Where have you been, Sookie?" he asked in his deep, strong voice. The concern also obvious in that voice made the coward in me want to get back into the taxi and drive away.

"I told you that I had to go away for a couple of days."

"That scribbled Post-It note you left on the fridge?" he frowned. "All it said was: _Going to get Jason_. If I hadn't heard from you today, I was going to report you missing."

I shrugged lamely.

"I'm sorry. I was in a rush."

He scrutinised me. I could hear his thoughts. He had been, and still was, worried about me. He checked me out for any visible injuries, including vampire bites.

"Where have you been, Sookie?" he repeated.

I managed a small, rueful smile.

"Bon Temps..."

He grimaced.

"I thought so. Damn it, Sookie. What did Jason get you caught up in? I swear your brother's the world's greatest screw-up."

"Jason did some V and it got out of hand," I sighed. "He needed my help."

Alcide's grimace deepened.

"I bet. Do you need my help?"

I hesitated, subconsciously clutching my overnight bag to my stomach like a safety pillow. I am sure that any girl would not have minded being recused by Alcide Herveaux. Only, in my case, he had been there, done that already.

I had been living in his house as his low-rent-paying housemate since moving to Dallas. He was not only my landlord, but also my closest friend of late. He had been there for me when the going got tough. Literally.

"I'm fine, Alcide," I eventually said. "Jason should be fine too. I just... need to work things out here so I can go back there for a while longer."

He huffed, omitting an unimpressed growl, and went back into the house. I followed him.

In the kitchen, he poured out the remainder of his coffee and dumped the mug into the sink.

"I'm worried about you, Sookie. Does this have anything to do with Northman?" Alcide's dark eyes were infinitely warmer than Eric's, but just as assessing. He knew when something was up.

"There's apparently a V ring operating in Louisiana," I admitted. "I'm going to use my brain-snooping to help Eric find out who's behind it."

"Why would you do that, Sookie?!" Alcide huffed again, causing his chest to expand caveman-like. Or, rather, wolf-like, considering he was a were.

I winced.

"The mess Jason got himself into involved being taken prisoner by Bill – Bill Compton. Eric came to save the day, only he didn't really. He told Bill that I would help him in his investigation if Bill let Jason go free."

"Well, fuck him," Alcide said. "You don't owe either of them fangers."

"If I don't help, Jason will be imprisoned again. This time by Eric in the basement of Fangtasia."

I walked to my bedroom. Alcide paced after me. He stood in the doorway; his dark, rugged good looks made his brooding all the more effective.

"He's playing you, Sookie. You're falling right into Northman's trap."

I pretended to not hear him as I unpacked my overnight bag. Squeezing past him, I put my dirty clothes into the washing basket in the laundry, then opened the hallway closet and dragged out my suitcase.

He watched this and shook his head. I gave up on the casual act.

"Come on Alcide, don't you have work to do or something? Everything is going to be fine."

I was touched that he was worried, but it was not going to change my mind.

He glared at me.

"I took the day off. Just like I took yesterday off. I was worried about you, Sookie."

His thoughts confirmed this. His mind was a mixture of relief at seeing me in one piece and apprehension that I was placing myself in danger yet again. I felt an intense pang of guilt, but the options seemed clear to me. I would return to Bon Temps to help Eric because, ultimately, I would be helping Jason. I had lost too many family members to forsake my only sibling, fool that he was.

"I'll be fine," I reinforced.

"I can't believe you're doing this," Alcide said. "Just like that, you're forgetting everything I thought you had learnt this past year to go back to that vampire hellhole. Are you quitting your job over this?!"

"I've negotiated with Eric that he pay me considerably more than what I would be getting at the store. I'll call tonight and try to get last minute leave. I should only be away for a couple of weeks." At least I would be getting paid well for helping Eric. I congratulated myself on this point of negotiation; even if, by the time it had occurred last night at dinner, it was a rather hollow victory.

"Well, you've got it all planned out then," Alcide scoffed sarcastically. "Or, rather, Eric has it all planned out and you're allowing yourself to be manipulated."

"Oh, please give me a little credit. I know that Eric probably has a hidden agenda, I just won't fall for it. You just can't see things rationally because you never got along with him." I tried to busy myself by packing the suitcase with new clothes.

Alcide slanted a dark look my way.

"Between Eric and I, it was purely business. I never needed to get along with that fanger in any other sense. You did and look where that got you."

I winced as the barb inevitably struck home.

"Eric is... Eric," I reasoned, loss for words to describe the enigma that was Eric Northman.

Alcide's hand curled into a fist. I half expected him to actually shake it at me with disapproval.

"This is fucked-up, Sookie. Sometimes you are so stupid and stubborn. It's too dangerous. You can't go back to him."

I also felt agitated because I wanted Alcide to be okay with me returning to Bon Temps. I knew that, deep down, I myself could not quite reconcile with the decision. As much as I hoped I could handle anything that came my way, especially now with Eric, my inner voice queried why I would even try to tempt fate.

"I'm not going back to Eric," I said, projecting my voice confidently. "This is just a temporary thing that I have to do for Jason, and then I'll come back here."

Alcide snorted.

"You know that he will try something. I don't trust him."

"I'm fully aware of what he is capable of and I'll be having none of it." I placed a placatory hand on Alcide's shoulder and smiled.

It failed to move him.

He looked me square in the eye.

"You mean like if Eric Northman tries to kill you again, Sookie?"


	6. Chapter 6

_Bill took me to Fangtasia._

_It was my first visit to a vampire establishment of any kind._

_Fangtasia had blood red walls and dim lighting. Vampire goth-types were draped along the bar, while tourists browsed the merchandise booth for souvenir t-shirts._

_I imagined that it was what a vampire bar would look like if it were a ride at Disney World._

"_Can I get you something to drink?"_

_I turned my attention away from gawking at my surroundings to Bill. With his mild manner, he did not quite fit in with the Fangtasia scene, despite being a vampire._

_In my girlish headband, floral dress and strappy sandals, I did not fit in at all._

_Bill bought me a gin and tonic, and a True Blood for himself._

_We wandered over to an empty table._

_I tried to make polite conversation, but I was distracted by the random human thoughts coming from every direction within the bar. Vampires and sex were recurring themes._

"_Are you sure you want to be here, Sookie?" Bill asked._

"_Of course," I replied chirpily, determined to block out the din and make the most of our date. We had only been out a few times._

_I had asked that, tonight, we do something where I could learn more about Bill's vampire-ness. _

_I guess Fangtasia was as cliché 'vampire' as it could get._

"_This is not my type of place," he muttered. "I find bars like this exhausting. It's why I have been mainstreaming."_

"_Exhausting?" I queried._

_He smiled ruefully. "Here, everyone expects me to be some big, bad vampire."_

_I laughed, causing his smile to lighten. _

"_You're just Vampire Bill to me," I teased._

_We settled into comfortable silence. I watched the dancer upon the raised podium in the midst of the bar. She had captured the leering attention of many patrons in the bar. As she was human, I was aware that her thoughts were solely focused on the vampire she danced before._

_He sat behind the podium, upon a throne-like chair._

_He was tall judging by the lazy sprawl of his body. His outfit was all-black: black shirt, black jacket, black pants, and black shoes. I understood where Bill's idea of the big, bad vampire came from._

"_Who's that?" I asked Bill._

_He grimaced. "Oh, you noticed him, did you?"_

_I blushed, not wanting him to think that I was checking out other guys while on our date._

"_No, it's not like that, I just-"_

"_Everyone does," he cut in resignedly. "That's Eric. He's the oldest thing in this bar."_

_I eyed the vampire called Eric through my lashes._

_His blonde hair brushed the top of his shoulders, framing a pale, Nordic face that was undeniably handsome; even if it wore an expression of disdain._

_As if sensing my scrutiny, his chin tilted, blue eyes capturing me._

_My stomach fluttered._

_He idly looked away._

_Embarrassed, I went back to watching the dancer._

_A few minutes later, Bill ducked his head._

"_Uh oh," he muttered into the bottleneck of his drink._

"_Don't say 'uh oh'," I said, taken aback. "Vampires are not supposed to say 'uh oh'."_

"_It's Eric," he explained. "He's scanned you twice. He's going to summon us."_

"_He can do that?"_

_I looked back at Eric and found that he was looking at me. It was unnerving._

"_Eric owns this bar. He's also the vampire sheriff of this area. Eric Northman is powerful, Sookie."_

_I had not been exposed enough to vampires to understand the subtleties of their hierarchy. I just assumed that all vampires were powerful. Bill was always so self-contained; that another vampire could rattle him was something new._

_Eric gestured to Bill with the imperious flick of his fingers._

_Bill rose, albeit reluctantly. I let him take my hand and lead me towards Eric._

"_Bill Compton. I have not seen you here in awhile." Eric's voice was low, but derisive. It did not have the rich Southern twang I had been expecting._

_Bill seemed to take this statement as an admonishment._

"_Yes, well, I've-"_

"_Been mainstreaming," Eric smirked. "I heard."_

_I realised that this meant he had heard all of my conversation with Bill. Vampire hearing._

_He looked pointedly at me._

"_I see that is going well for you."_

_Bill straightened._

"_Yes, of course, sorry. Eric, this is my friend-"_

"_Sookie Stackhouse," Eric finished smoothly._

_I had no idea how he had become so clued in._

"_It's nice to meet you," I said, glad for the pleasantries that automatic sprung to mind as a result of Gran's teaching._

_His smile was slow, charismatic._

"_Well, aren't you sweet."_

_I met his stare. I'm not sure how I suddenly became brazen, but something irked me about this vampire._

"_Not really."_

_Bill's hand squeezed mine in warning._

_A calculating spark lit in Eric's eyes. I instinctively knew that it was unwise to court his interest._

"_I'll be sure to come by here another time so we can talk, Eric," Bill said, hastily filling what was becoming an awkward silence. Awkward on our part. Eric seemed to enjoy the tension._

_Bill and I took our first steps away._

"_I'm not finished with you yet." Eric's authoritative tone stopped us in our tracks. _

"_Please sit," he said with mock courtesy._

_I glanced at Bill. He inclined his head to indicate that we should do as Eric asked. Cautiously, I sat down upon the lesser chair to Eric's right._

"_So, Bill. Are you quite attached to your friend?" Eric spoke to Bill, but his eyes remained on me._

_Bill bristled. "She is mine."_

"_Yes, I am his," I confirmed, even though I did not quite know what this meant._

_Eric was devouring me with those blue eyes. It was not lust, but the chilling focus of a predator. I felt inexplicably trapped, unable to preen or recoil as others in my position would have done._

"_What a pity," he mused softly. "For me."_

_I was not intimidated. _

_I was intrigued._

* * *

_._

* * *

_Hi everyone! Please note that this is not set in any particular season - it's non-linear and not always 'canon-accurate', with characters and events shuffled around to suit the story!_


	7. Chapter 7

Ginger showed up to apparently accompany me back to Louisiana.

Alcide took one look at her fidgeting on the doorstep in a crop top and denim hot pants, and shook his head.

"That Fangtasia groupie is here," he called out to me.

I could only roll my eyes.

"Well hi there, Sookie," Ginger chirped. "Eric sent me to get you."

As if to prove it, she held out her hand.

In black Magic Marker, her palm read: _Get Sookie Dallas. _

Oh jeez.

I weighed my options. Ginger was perpetually scatterbrained with an annoying habit of shrieking. I doubted that she could enforce Eric's will if I refused to go with her; however, she was trusted by him. She was loyal and had been glamoured over and over again. Probably to the point of insanity. I did not know her last name, and she probably did not either.

With a sigh, I let her inside the house while I finished packing. Within the hour, we were back in a taxi on the way to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.

I left Alcide still shaking his head.

It was typical that my flights to and from Dallas were within the same day, with the return flight via Anubis Air Airlines.

Eric had paid for the flights, as any employer relocating an employee would, he had smoothly explained. He had certainly booked flights that were of convenience to him.

Ginger chattered all the way to Shreveport.

I was pleased to find Jason waiting to pick me up from Shreveport Regional Airport. He seemed bemused at the sight of Ginger trotting in her lucite heels by my side.

I made sure Ginger got safely into a taxi. I told the driver Fangtasia's address myself.

As the taxi was about to depart, Ginger wound down the window.

"You don't have to be afraid, Sookie," she said. "He's really very nice."

The taxi departed before I could respond.

In addition to my flights, Eric had offered to pay my expenses to stay in Shreveport. In turn, it had been a no-brainer to decline this offer. I wanted to get as much distance from him as possible. If that meant going only as far as Bon Temps, then so be it.

Jason wanted me to stay with him at his house, but I insisted upon being dropped off at Gran's house.

"But you'll be all alone here," he sort of pleaded. "What about if your investigation gets you into trouble?"

A little bitchily, I assumed he sought the comfort of my presence, as I was the one protecting him, not vice versa. If not for me, he would be far worse off by now.

He did not linger once he had retrieved my suitcase from the back of his truck. I thanked him for picking me up, but was mostly glad to see him gone.

I expected to see Eric at any moment, and Jason had already caused enough_ trouble_.

Eric did not appear in the time it took me to unpack, shower, and put fresh linen on my bed. Maybe it was a placebo that made me sense his presence? From the moment I had stepped back onto Louisiana soil, both my brain and body had been ill at ease.

I sat upon the bed and made a list of things to do the next day. I would need to pick up some groceries if I was going to be staying here for any amount of time. I also wanted to visit Merlotte's to try to get in contact with Amy Burley. This vampire blood investigation needed to be expedited as much as possible. Only then could I get back to the comfort of Dallas life.

It passed midnight. I reasoned that I was not going to wait around for my ex-boyfriend cum so-called employer to show up just because of a gut feeling. I went to bed.

I immediately woke up when I heard the creak of footsteps upon the porch.

The bedside clock showed me that it was 1:38 am.

Throwing on a dressing gown, I picked my way downstairs to the front of the house without turning on any lights.

I peered through the dusty windowpane.

"Hello Sookie."

Eric stood on the other side of the door.

After a moment's hesitation, I opened it warily.

"Eric, you woke me up," I sighed, by inane way of greeting.

His blonde head bowed slightly.

"I see you have returned. I considered it a possibility that you would remain in Dallas once you were there. Ginger did her job."

"I'm here because I care about Jason," I replied stiffly.

His eyes probed mine. "Do you care about Alcide?"

I thought this was off-topic, and frowned at him.

"Now that you have established that I haven't backed out on my side of this stupid deal, you can leave, Eric."

He did not remove himself from the porch. His eyes travelled leisurely along my terrycloth-clad figure.

I could not help but notice that, in comparison to my frumpy state, he looked typically stylish in his sleek, black leather jacket, white V-neck and dark, fitted trousers.

"Go away, Eric," I said. "We will talk tomorrow."

He smiled rakishly, still not budging.

"Aren't you going to invite me in?"

"No."

His smile broadened. He was so disturbingly handsome.

"Invite me in, Sookie," he said silkily.

"No," I repeated. "I'm going to close this door now and go back to sleep."

I was about to do just that when he reached out and caught me by the belt around my waist. The knot came apart easily. I was wearing a white cotton chemise. It was never going to win an award for being a particularly revealing or sexy garment, but it was still not for his viewing pleasure. Not anymore.

"Cut it out!" I snapped, gathering up the sides of the dressing gown and pulling it tightly across my body.

"You haven't changed, Sookie," he remarked. I was not sure whether he meant physically or mentally. Frankly, I did not care to know.

"I'm not in the mood for your games, Eric. Go away."

And, just like that, his demeanour turned serious.

"I had wished to begin investigations tonight, but I see that you are _not in the mood_. You will come to Fangtasia tomorrow night. I will send Ginger to pick you up."

I preferred it when his voice was like this: low, clipped and arrogant. It meant that I did not have to try read into it further.

"Yes, tomorrow," I confirmed. "I can find my own ride."

I wanted it to be clear that, I would not let him boss me around anymore than his blackmail allowed.

"Such independence, Sookie," he tutted.

My assertive side reacted badly to his mockery.

"You can't control me, Eric. I'm here because you're a threat to my brother, but that's as far as it goes in terms of anything you've got on me. You screw me over, and I promise you'll regret it."

His smirk vanished, replaced by the hard set of his mouth.

He did not reply; although, his blue eyes were intense upon my face, searching for lord knows what.

"Goodnight Eric," I said with finality. Still silent, he did nothing to stop me as I quietly closed the door between off.

He walked away.

I felt a strange mixture of relief and turmoil as he launched into the sky and left me alone. For now, at least.


	8. Chapter 8

I was not expecting a warm welcome by showing up at Merlotte's Bar and Grill.

My last time at Merlotte's – seemingly such a long time ago – had been to hastily resign from my waitressing job. My colleagues had reacted with varying degrees of hurt, resentment and/or scepticism.

It was Arlene Fowler who noticed me as I entered Merlotte's. She poked her brassy red head out from the kitchen window.

Her blue eyes widened. Her head whipped back out of sight.

A few moments later, she walked out from the kitchen in her white Merlotte's-branded t-shirt and shorts. I could hear her thoughts, surprised and displeased. She had not changed.

Out loud, she exclaimed: "Why, look who it is, Sookie Stackhouse!"

Terry Bellefleur's head poked out next from the kitchen window. He greeted me with a grunt, unperturbed by my sudden appearance. His thoughts were focused on his crush on Arlene. He had not changed either.

Arlene gave me the critical female-to-female once-over. She took in my cream silk singlet, tailored pants and kitten heels.

"You look different," she conceded, her voice now a little unsure. "What are you doing back here, Sookie?"

I smiled at her, hoping to appeal to any memory she had of us once being friendly, if not actual friends.

"I'm looking for Amy," I said. "I heard she works here now."

"Amy?" Arlene was confused. She had expected me to be seeking Merlotte's owner, Sam Merlotte, perhaps to get my job back.

"I just want to have a chat with her."

"Amy got your job, you know," Arlene remarked, along the same line as her thoughts. "When you just took off and left, Sam hired her to replace you. She's been doing real well here."

"So I've heard," I replied dryly. "Is she working today?"

"No. She's requested the week off. Me and Dawn are covering her shifts."

I sighed. It was likely that Amy knew about Jason being busted with V, and had decided to lay low for awhile.

Arlene was watching me as I considered my next steps. The purposeful clearing of her throat made me focus back on her.

She held a stack of menus tight to her chest.

"You still with that blonde vampire?"

I shot her an arch look.

"I'm sure you know by now that I'm not."

Her thoughts told me that she did not believe this, but her mouth formed a tight, forced smile.

"Oh, okay."

My patience was wearing thin.

"If Amy gets in touch, can you let me know? I'm back at my house for the time being."

Arlene shrugged.

"I doubt she will, but okay."

_I_ doubted _she_ would.

I turned to leave, but stopped in my tracks at the sight of Ginger flailing towards me.

"_Sookie!"_

She wore pleather snakeskin pants and a bright yellow boob tube. Arlene was self-righteous enough to be scandalised.

"Ginger, what are you doing here?!"

Ginger grinned.

"Well, we're gal pals now, aren't we, Sookie? After I did such a good job getting you from Dallas, Eric asked me to keep hanging out with you."

She was harmless, but I wanted to wring her neck. Even if it would be shooting the messenger. I only refrained from reacting because Arlene was our audience.

"I thought you weren't with that blonde vampire," Arlene said snidely.

I looked from Arlene to Ginger sternly.

"I'm not."

That afternoon, I found myself entertaining Ginger. Or, rather, she happily watched daytime TV while I made some calls to try to find out where Amy Burley had gone.

When she was not chattering, Ginger was actually okay company. Her brain was so addled that there were long periods of time when not one thought came from her.

Peace and quiet in Bon Temps was rare.

"What are you wearing to Fangtasia tonight?" Ginger asked during a commercial break.

Nonplussed, I indicated my current outfit. "This."

Ginger giggled, as if I were a comedian.

"That's funny. But you do look different, Sookie. Like all grown up and classy and stuff."

"Err, thanks."

"But, it's not gonna cut it at Fangtasia," she continued. "If you don't have much stuff here, I could lend you something of mine."

The mental image of me in in snakeskin pants and a boob tube was ridiculous, but I managed to keep a straight face.

"That's awful nice of you and all, but I think what I'm wearing now will be fine."

"You want to impress Eric don't you?"

"Absolutely not."

She tilted her head at me, child-like.

"He has been different since you left. I think it's good that you came back, Sookie."

I did not like talking about the past with anyone, let alone Ginger. Her observations unnerved me.

"I came back here to help my brother, Ginger. If anything, Eric is being a blackmailing bully forcing me to stay. I'm not _back _at all."

"Oh." She looked confused. "But I always thought you two were good together."

"That was a long time ago. A lot has happened since then."

She nodded, her expression brightening.

"That was ages ago, wasn't it! Like a lifetime ago! I find it hard to remember yesterday!"

_Days of Our Lives _returned to the screen, and we fell back into silence.

After the show finished, Ginger glanced down at her wrist. She did not wear a watch.

"We have to start getting ready!"

I looked out of the window. Dusk was nearby, but true nightfall was still a couple of hours away.

"Ginger, when it's time to head out, I will get off this chair and we will go. I don't need time to get ready."

"Come on, Sookie! It will be fun to get ready together. I always at the bar, so I don't often get to take time out to get ready proper."

The last thing I needed was for Ginger to take her Eric-appointed role too seriously and think we were some type of BFFs.

She took my pause as agreement to her plans and beamed at me.

"I have my clothes and cosmetics case in the car!"

I wanted to downplay Ginger's misplaced excitement, but she was already tottering out of the house to get her belongings.

"We'll have a girls' night out!" she hooted.

I could not be bothered informing her that this girl did not want to have fun.


	9. Chapter 9

Ginger sailed through the front doors of Fangtasia as if it was home, pulling me along with her.

It was a weekday, and too early in the night. The bar was occupied with a lacklustre assortment of local vampires and fangbangers. The crowd would not peak until around midnight.

A few of the vampires did a double-take upon recognising me.

Eric was sprawled out in his throne-like chair, flicking through a pile of papers.

"Look! Eric has already risen! He never comes out here this early!" Ginger wiggled her brows meaningfully.

"We're supposed to be finding a V ring, Ginger," I shrugged. "I guess he wants to use every bit of time he can."

Without looking up from his papers, Eric crooked a finger at me. Summoning rather than beckoning.

Ginger disappeared from my side.

Clenching my teeth, I strode up to Eric.

"I went to Merlotte's today to see if Amy was there, but, of course, she wasn't."

"That was stupid," he said, still not looking at me. "Until I know exactly how Miss Burley is involved in this matter, you should not try to engage with her or any suspect on your own."

I was tempted to kick him. He reclined with one leg raised, his ankle resting on his knee. Unfortunately, with his vampire strength meant he could not be easily moved. In fact, I remembered once seeing him casually kick a man who dared approach him far across the bar.

"I may be helping you out, but being unreasonable is only going to waste time."

"You may go places with Ginger."

"Ginger?!" I exclaimed. "The woman is a walking liability."

"Her screams will raise the alarm if you get in trouble," he said drily, flicking to the next page of his papers.

I stood with my hands on my hips, agitated, not that he noticed.

"I can look after myself."

"Can you, Sookie?"

"Better than when you looked after me," I muttered. I immediately regretted it.

He looked up.

I refused to flinch under his scrutiny. There was a long pause. My hands eventually dropped to my side.

"You look different," he finally said. "Is this how you dress in Dallas?"

I scowled at him. "What I wear is of no concern of yours. Can we get back to business?"

It was true, though. I had evolved from headbands and sundresses, as had my life in general. When I had packed to return to Louisiana, I had made the conscious decision to show everyone – mainly Eric – that the shift in my style was a physical example of how I had moved on.

He was surveying my outfit with interest, having set aside his pile of papers.

"So you'll dress up as Bon Temps Sookie for Bill, but I get Dallas Sookie, the ice queen?"

"You're being ridiculous."

I turned away to sit upon the chair next to him, purposefully turning my attention to the growing crowd.

The caress of his fingers trailing along my thigh was unexpected. I jerked in surprise.

"Can you not?" I bit out irritably, angling my legs away from him.

"Why?" he smirked. "Doesn't sitting here by my side remind you of all the nights we spent here together?"

I scoffed at him.

"You mean all the long, boring nights of watching people fawn over you?"

He laughed richly.

"We spent many nights together doing other things, Sookie."

"Shut up, Eric."

His eyes had turned to glittering sapphire. I did not want to continue this conversation.

"Bill's coming here tonight," he said, swiftly changing the topic; although, it was not necessarily to a better one.

"What – why?" I asked.

He stretched lazily in his chair.

"He said he would drop by to give me some documents I need. I think he just wants to see whether you really are mine again."

"Well, I'm not," I said. "I don't even want to go along with this charade of yours."

"But you will because it's part of what's keeping your precious brother safe," Eric reminded with a sneer.

I looked up at the ceiling and sent a silent prayer for patience.

His voice dropped to a silky murmur. "When Bill walks in here, probably followed by his lackeys, you will do everything to convince them that you are mine."

"Oh please," I whispered back hotly. "I might not blab to Bill about you lying to him about us, but there's zero chance of me putting on a show."

"A show," he repeated. "I would like that from you."

Back in the day, I would have been girlishly delighted by his arrogance. Eric Northman wore his ego well, as well as the Italian slate grey cashmere suit he now wore tieless.

But that was back then. I had since schooled myself to portray nonchalance.

For the next half hour or so, we ceased with the innuendos and focused on the upcoming investigation into who was dealing the vampire blood. When he chose to be, Eric was the consummate professional. I had to admit that he was very successful as the ruthless vampire sheriff of Area 5. Begrudgingly admit.

When Bill Compton entered Fangtasia, he would have been met with the sight of Eric and I sitting next to each other, heads bent together, in deep, seemingly intimate, discussion.

He was accompanied by his lackeys, as Eric called them, comprising Katerina Pellham and a couple of faceless suits.

"Here's those documents, Eric," he said, holding out a manilla folder.

Eric arched a blonde brow. "As I said before, there was no need for you to hand deliver them yourself, _my liege_."

Bill stiffened at the sarcasm.

"Yes, well, as I'm sure you suspected, it was an excuse to come here. I want to have a word to Sookie."

It was Eric's turn to stiffen. Whether he did so genuinely, or in an exaggeration of the pretence we were supposed to maintain, I was not sure.

"She's mine," he said, eying Bill.

"And I'm your king. I just want to talk to her."

It appeared that Bill was not afraid to throw around his title. While I doubted that Eric was much affected by being under Bill's rule, this was not the time for a pissing match.

"Look, I'll talk to Bill, Eric. You talk to Katerina." The strawberry-blonde was hovering in the background, her thoughts revealing that she wanted the chance to be briefed on the V investigation.

He regarded me steadily.

"Make it quick."

I ushered Bill to a quieter corner of the bar.

"Well?"

"Is it true, Sookie? Have you returned to Eric?"

He looked so sombre and concerned that I was tempted to deny everything. Then I thought of Jason, and the greater good won out.

"Yes," I confirmed. "I'm back with Eric. We're denying this to most people, but Eric thought you should know as his king."

This embellishment of the lie had slipped out way too easily; however, I remembered what I had told Arlene and wanted things to be plausible should the lie unravel.

Of course, I was aware that lying to a vampire king was dangerous, even if my knowledge of vampire laws had become hazy over time.

I tried to ignore the discomfort of _deja vu _that yet again Eric was manoeuvring me into circumstances that would spiral out of my control.

Bill was watching me carefully.

"If I was you, Sookie, I wouldn't want anything to do with Eric."

I was glad that my pride overtook all other feelings.

"Well, you're not me, Bill. You don't need to concern yourself with my business."

Bill looked at me with those solemn blue eyes, which always seemed flat and morose in comparison to Eric's.

"While there's a V ring operating in my kingdom, and you are assisting in the investigation, I must consider you part of my business, Sookie. Even if you belong to Eric Northman. Yet again."


	10. Chapter 10

"I'll take you home now."

It was my turn not to look up from the papers I was reading.

We had moved into the back rooms of Fangtasia. Eric sat behind his desk while I was safely ensconced on the other side, going through documents of past V crimes.

"It's only 12:30," I said, glancing at my watch, but not at him. "I think we should keep working. If you want to be out in the bar, don't let me stop you."

"Sookie."

He had a knack for commandeering attention even at the lowest tone. Involuntarily, as if my body was not following the lead of my brain, I turned to him.

Who knows how long he had been watching me. I did not like the look in his blue eyes. It was too reflective for comfort.

"If I go out there, will you come with me?"

"No."

"But you said you were mine."

"I _lied _to Bill, Eric," I reminded him irritably. "And only because your lie forced me to. Quit being weird."

He shrugged, eyes still steady upon me. "I want to take you home now."

I set aside the papers to frown at him. "Ginger brought me here and said she could drop me off also."

"Ginger answers to me. I'm sure you will find her suddenly unable to drive you home. I will take you. Now."

I squared my shoulders at him. He was unmoving save for his mouth. Cool, unruffled Eric, too handsome in his grey suit. My intuition told me to not give him an inch.

"I said quit it, Eric."

I was sitting in my chair one moment, and swept backwards against the door the next. My feet dangled above the concrete floor as I was lifted at the hips. With effortless vampiric strength, he shifted my weight from one hand to the other.

"Mmm," he murmured. "This seems familiar." His lips brushed against my forehead as he spoke.

"Put me down!" I considered head-butting him, but would have been the one to come off worse. The leg I swung to kick him with was caught between his thighs. He pressed against me. Hard.

My eyes flew to his, shocked.

His brow rose mockingly.

"Of course I want you."

"Put me down, Eric. This is not funny." My voice sounded choked, almost sullen. When he slowly lowered me to the floor, I had to brace myself against the door to remain standing. I felt both ill and exhilarated. Fucking blood bond.

"Sookie," he purred. "We're going to walk through the bar. We'll get in my car and I'll drive you home. Yes?" This was not a real question.

His hands remained at my hips. We both looked downwards as his thumb tucked into the waistband of my pants, fingers hooking through the belt loops.

"Whatever you're doing, just stop it, Eric. I won't let you mess with my head." My anger sat too dangerously close to my heart.

His answering smile was cocky, but at least it lightened the atmosphere.

"I'm only driving you home, Sookie."  
I kept telling myself that it was only a drive home as I found myself being led out Fangtasia. It was better than being trapped in compromising positions, I reasoned.

Eric clutched my hand, mostly dragging me along with him rather than leading.

The crowds gave us a wide berth. Our joint hands were viewed symbolically as a public declaration that we were 'back on'. I cringed at the thoughts of all the humans that envied my position.

I was silent for the drive, and relieved that he was too.

Relief was further felt when we reached Bon Temps in record time. Eric had driven even faster than his typical high speed.

"Thanks." Manners automatically sprang forth as I practically leapt from the car. I hurried onto the porch.

I halted when I realised that he had also exited the car and was trailing behind me.

"Erm, you can go now."

"Oh, I'm not leaving," he said, moving past me. "You're going to invite me in."

He turned to smile at me wickedly.

"So we can be together tonight, Sookie."

I inhaled sharply.

"No way."

His smile only broadened.

"We never properly celebrated your return to Louisiana. We can now. You and me. Don't you remember how it was, Sookie?"

I stared up at him blankly. I _did_ remember how it had been between us. The good and the bad. I did not trust him.

"I'm not going to talk about this with you," I said tightly.

A blonde brow lifted.

"Okay. So you'd really rather stay out here all night than invite me in?"

"No," I countered. "I'm going to go inside. You're going to go back to Shreveport."

I was about to do just that when he reached out and caught me around the waist.

"Invite me in," he said seductively.

"Absolutely not."

I tried to brush him off, but he backed me against the side of the house.

His fangs unsheathed.

"Invite me in. _Now._"

I shivered, but held my ground.

"You can't bully your way in, Eric," I protested resentfully. "I won't be intimidated by your stupid vampire teeth."

"Oh really?" A cool hand trailed down my bare arm.

His eyes were dark in the moonlight. I was drowning in them. Some strange longing overwhelmed me.

"So, are you going to invite me in?"

His voice, even at its lowest, silkiest pitch, broke the spell.

"I'm not yours anymore," I said, managing to control the quiver in my voice.

He glanced down at me, at where my hand rubbed defensively at the goosebumps that had formed. His expression cooled. His fangs retracted.

"So you are."

I hoped that was the end of it. As much as our blood bond was messing with my body, I was not such a fool as to give him entry to the one place in Louisiana that was my safe haven.

Even Eric could not get around the vampire requirement that he be invited into any privately-owned place he wished to enter.

However, I was not expecting his next move.

He stared at me grimly.

And stepped across the threshold into the house.

"What the hell! Excuse me!" I followed him frantically. "What are you doing? I rescinded your invitation!"

We stood in the reception, the door still open, but no mystical force was attempting to make him leave.

"You don't own the house anymore," he said, holding up a key. "I do."

The key looked remarkably like one of the spare house keys that I thought was safely hidden away in the kitchen.

"Why would you do that?" I spluttered. "Why would you buy my house?"

He tucked the key into his pocket.

"Because I always knew that you would come back here," he said matter-of-factly. "If I owned the house, then I would own you."

He stalked towards me.

"Sookie, _you are mine_."


	11. Chapter 11

_It had been a long, slow shift for few tips._

_I was relieved when my little, yellow Honda pulled up to the house. All I wanted was a cup of tea, a shower and a good night's sleep._

_I was not expecting to find Eric Northman hovering in midair by the porch steps._

_A flying vampire. Of course._

"_Oh crap," I muttered as I got out of the car. I procrastinated by shutting and locking the door for much longer than it would normally take._

"_Good evening Miss Stackhouse." His greeting made me turn._

_A few months had passed since our introduction and only interaction at Fangtasia, but he was instantly recognisable. Blonde, handsome and absolutely urbane. He wore a similarly dark outfit to the one he had been wearing at the bar. Tonight's black jacket was leather and had a buttery sheen in the moonlight. With less restraint, I could have stroked the damn Viking._

_It was manners that kept me from blurting out: 'Why are you here?'_

_Instead, I said, "Can I help you?" _

_He smiled; although, the gesture was cool. I could not read him. Curiosity was overtaking my tiredness._

"_I thought that we might renew our acquaintance," he replied. His voice, so at odds with the accent I was used to, cut through the night despite its low pitch. A chill actually ran down my spine. Or a thrill._

"_What do you mean?" I asked._

_He smoothed back the hair from his eyes. I did not usually find long haired men attractive, but Eric Northman looked neither feminine nor unkempt._

_I stared as his feet neatly hit the ground._

"_It has come to my attention that you and Bill Compton are no more," he said. "Is this true?" _

_He sounded so conversational, I became wary._

"_It's not any of your business, Mr Northman."_

_I was sweaty and grease-stained from carrying all those Thursday night fried specials. And yet he surveyed my Merlotte's t-shirt, shorts and tennis shoes with great interest. _

"_If you are no longer attached to him, it's of relevance to me."_

"_As what?" I questioned dubiously._

"_As the sheriff of the area Bill resides in. Amongst other things."_

_We had a mini stare-off of sorts. He did not have my mortal compulsions. I blinked and he won._

_I gave in._

"_Bill and I stopped seeing each other awhile ago."_

"_Why?" he pressed._

_I gestured helplessly. "I guess we just weren't suited."_

"_You mean you realised that he wasn't the right one for you," he said. "I am certain the break up was not mutual. Bill has been drowning his sorrows at Fangtasia."_

_I placed my hands on my hips._

"_Is this why you're here? To plead his case?"_

"_To plead his case?" Eric scorned arrogantly. "Absolutely not."_

"_Right." I walked past him, towards the house. Now on edge._

"_Can I come in?" He used vampire speed to overtake me. "I'm your visitor. It would be the polite thing to invite me into your home."_

"_An unexpected visitor," I pointed out. "At 11 o'clock at night."_

_He continued to stand there; a small, enigmatic smile upon his mouth._

_I actually found myself saying, "Fine." _

_I unlocked the door and gestured for him to enter._

_He did not move._

"_Say it," he commanded softly._

_In my limited experience with vampires, I had learned that I was unaffected by attempts to be glamoured. And yet I was drowning in Eric's blue eyes, as enthralled by the moment as I imagined I would ever be._

"_Mr Northman," I breathed, "will you please come in?"_

_Cautious internal Sookie chided me for being naïve, but reckless, optimistic Sookie – the part of me that was purely attracted to Eric Northman – was cheering._

_His smile widened. _

_He stepped aside and held the door open for me. I was forced to duck under his arm to get inside. He purposefully moved at the same time, so our bodies brushed against each other. I looked up at him. He smouldered. Literally smouldered despite his cold-bloodedness. _

_I hurried ahead._

_As I made a pot of tea, I pretended not to be perturbed by this gorgeous, practically unknown vampire roaming about my kitchen. He moved with a careless swagger, surveying the collection knickknacks scattered about the room. _

"_How very... quaint," he mused, seemingly to himself._

_The kettle boiled. I filled the teapot and set it upon the table. I sat down, hoping he would follow my lead, yet he continued to stand._

"_What are you doing here?" I asked._

_His blue eyes attempted to beguile me once more. I resisted. As well as I could._

"_I have heard that you humans like to wait for a period before getting involved with another. If my estimation is correct, you and Bill Compton have been separated for a month."_

"_So?"_

"_You have not exchanged blood." This was a statement, not a question._

_I instinctively cringed. Blood drinking as a human held no appeal to me. Bill had offered, but I had declined each time. I had not even liked him drinking my blood. Clearly, I was not cut out to be a fangbanger._

_Eric had been watching me closely as I tripped down the Bill Compton memory lane._

"_I see," he said, even though I had said nothing. "It is settled then. You shall now be mine."_

_At this, I jerked with shock._

"_Is this a joke, Eric? We're strangers!" I dropped the formal 'Mr Northman' in my haste to check him._

_His expression remained self-satisfied. "And yet here we are, inside your little house. That you invited me, a supposed stranger, into."_

"_Because I'm polite!"_

"_Because you're interested."_

_I winced, unable to assume a poker face. I _was_ interested. But I had not expected this proposition._

"_Is this some macho besting game that you're playing with Bill? See who can get a taste of Sookie?"_

_I stilled as he finally chose to sit down, pulling his chair too close to mine._

"_If all I wanted was to taste your blood, then I could do it right now and there wouldn't be a thing you could do to stop me." Under the table, his cool fingers trailed along my thigh._

"_But instead, I am asking you to be mine." _

_When I shifted away from him, he smiled cockily, revealing his fangs. I got the feeling that most girls would have instantaneously agreed to whatever he wanted. But, as gorgeous as he was, I had only just ended things with Bill. It would be out of the saucepan and into the fire._

_We went for round two of our mini stare-off._

_He did not seem troubled by my silence. He rose to his feet._

"_I'll leave you now, Sookie Stackhouse. Arrangements will be made for you and I to see each other soon."_

_I also rose._

"_I'm not yours," I felt the need to clarify, "I did not say yes." _

_He shrugged unconcernedly. "You'll come around."_

_I trailed after him as he walked to the door and exited the house._

"_Why me?" I ended up asking. I needed to know._

_He paused. Turning to face me, his blue eyes swept my body._

"_You're special," he replied. _

_Vampire speed made him disappear into the night._

* * *

.

* * *

Thank you all for the continued interest in my story!


	12. Chapter 12

As he loomed over me, eyes full of predatory hunger and fangs exposed, I felt rage more than fear.

This had been building up for too long.

I aimed high and punched him in the face.

Unfortunately, an untrained attack from a small human had zilch impact upon a one thousand year-plus vampire.

His head was unmoving and his skin remained smooth and pale. In contrast, I stumbled backwards and my knuckles throbbed.

"You broke my nose," he remarked, with an infuriatingly wry smile.

I stormed passed him, out of the house and back onto the porch.

"Where do you think you are going?" he called out.

I ignored him; instead, reaching into my bag for my phone.

"Sookie." He was in front of me in the next instant.

Seemingly thinking he had the upper hand, he appeared quite relaxed. His stupid, handsome nose was no doubt repairing itself.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"I'm leaving," I fumed. My voice sounded reassuringly pissed off. "Until I can resolve this mess, I'm going to stay at Jason's."

Eric whipped the phone away in a beat.

"I wouldn't be so hasty," he advised. "Who do you think sold me this charming piece of real estate?"

"_Jason_?" Some of my anger was replaced with shock.

"He wouldn't," I said; although, deep within my heart, I feared he had. It seemed likely that even Jason's lacklustre enquiries about me staying at Gran's house had a greater meaning than brotherly concern.

"He did," Eric confirmed. "Your brother sold me this house around six months ago. He was quite receptive towards my offer. I realise now that he was probably feeding an expensive V habit and thus wanted the money."

"Are you lying to me?" I frowned. I felt numb, then hollow, then horrified.

He leant forward meaningfully. "I swear it on Godric."

"Godric," I muttered, suppressing a shiver. "Don't bring _him_ into this."

Eric shrugged.

"Come Sookie," he said, when it became apparent I was stuck in my dilemma of what to do and where to go. "Let's go back inside."

I resisted his attempts to lightly propel me through the door.

"I don't want to go back inside," I said through gritted teeth. "Not until you're gone."

He laughed. The bastard actually laughed. It was if I had made a casual joke.

"You're being too hasty. It's late, you need rest. Why don't you just let me take you upstairs to bed?"

"Go to hell, Eric. I should have never come back here! Clearly, I shouldn't have cared about my traitor-of-a-brother!"

Eric's amused expression sobered.

"For the record, he seemed convinced that you would never return. I suppose it's how he reconciled with his conscience."

"Trying to make me feel better?" I sneered sarcastically.

"If it makes you less melodramatic," he agreed.

"_Urgh_!" My agitated hand snatched back my phone. He kept my – _his –_ keys in his possession, tucking them into the tailored pocket of his suit pants.

"You-" I stabbed at his chest with my finger "-you never stop trying to take everything from me!"

His head bowed, in open acknowledgement rather than any shame. I stabbed his chest a few more times. It was like poking a rock, but helped me release my anger.

"I bought this house because I care about you," he said mildly.

"Care about me?!" Perhaps that moment triggered it, but I felt the wetness of irrational tears upon my cheeks.

I struggled with my phone to find someone to call. Alcide was next now that Jason was out. He could not exactly turn up in the next minute, but he would be a calming influence.

"Don't call him," Eric said, no doubt anticipating this attempt. "Stop running to that dog to solve your problems when I'm right here."

"Shut up." I continued to struggle with the phone. Touch screens were freakin' annoying when they wanted to be. Getting through to Ginger would do at this point!

I wished that I still had my Honda. I could have jumped in it and driven off. But the Honda had gone a long time ago; back in the days when I would not have even dreamt that it would be missed.

Absentmindedly, I wiped at my tears and now-runny nose with the back of my hand.

"Sookie." His lowered voice was perhaps an attempt at both soothing me and getting my attention. He still sounded arrogant.

I did not immediately register his hands upon my shoulders, seizing me.

I was caught off guard, and the phone flew out of my hands, over the railing.

We kissed.

He kissed me like the Eric of old. Lusty, demanding and all-consuming. My body catapulted between longing and disgust.

His tongue thrust into my mouth.

Brought back to reality, I tore myself away.

My hands clenched, talon-like, to ward him off when reached for me.

"No," I warned, ready to punch him again. This time, I would go for those smug, blue eyes.

"No?" One blonde brow arched. "If you just let go, everything would be fine."

"Oh for Godssake!" I cried, "Do you think my legs are just going to magically open for you?"

"I wish," he replied, not missing a beat.

We stared at each other. Like we did all the time nowadays, where there were few words for the simmering emotions engulfing us. Or at least engulfing me.

I could have laughed hysterically, cried just as bad, and dropped a string of curse words all at once.

But I did not.

I inhaled and exhaled a shaky breath.

"Is this entire thing just you trying to manipulate everyone to suit you?" My voice was composed, even if it was also somewhat forlorn.

His eyes became hooded and secretive. He was good at withdrawing to impassiveness when it suited him. Even after all the intimacies we had shared, and our blood bond that lingered, I could not read him at times.

"No," he finally said. "Not everything."

It had been a week of trying to keep it together. To play it cool and all those other 'running into the ex' clichés. I had already let a few cheap tears escape. In that moment, I felt overwhelmingly exhausted.

I knew what to do. Sensible Sookie served me best these days, not the one that gave into romanticised whims.

"Eric," I declared. "Get the fuck off my porch and out of my life."


	13. Chapter 13

"What do you mean there are no flights left?!"

I tried to control the high-pitched freak-out that was my voice, but the circumstances were just too ridiculous.

"I'm sorry ma'am, all our flights are booked, with full standby lists, until 9:45 tonight." The female customer service officer offered me the same vaguely apologetic smile that all the other airlines' officers had when I had attempted to leave Louisiana during daylight.

"Yes," the woman continued, "that big football game is on in Dallas tonight. I'm guessing a lot of fans are flying over at the last minute." She gestured towards a loud, jersey-clad group in their early twenties.

I closed my eyes for a split second and prayed for calm. It did not work.

"Psychopathic frat boy," I hissed, grinding my teeth.

The woman nodded, clearly experienced with disappointed would-be travellers. However, she did not quite understand.

Of the flights that were scheduled to leave for Dallas, each flight display monitor I had rushed towards had taunted me with their standby list. Aside from a few random names that must have got in early, the lists read in every space: _Northman_.

I did not know how he had achieved it. And yet, I was not really surprised that he had.

"_Sookieeee_!"

I winced at the sound of the increasingly familiar voice.

Ginger was waving at me in a skimpy denim playsuit. The jersey-clad group checked her out and sniggered lasciviously amongst themselves.

I shot a weary smile at the customer service officer and met up with Ginger.

"What is it now?" I sighed.

"There are no flights, come back to Shreveport with me." She sounded rehearsed, and I knew exactly whom had written her lines.

"Eric is being a goddamn control freak," I fumed, pointing angrily towards the closest display monitor.

"Oh," she shrugged. "I wondered why he made Yvetta make all those flight reservations when she should have been dancin'. Those airline folks were having a hard time of understanding her accent!"

I would have prayed for calm again, but it had not worked the first time.

"So what now?" I asked Ginger, struggling to contain my irritation. It was not her fault she was caught up in the drama. She was just a glamour-frazzled pawn.

She beamed. "He said to come see you at the airport. That's like now. And that I would make a good air hostess if I wasn't so good at being on the bar!"

"I see."

Her smile faltered. "Well, he also said that I was to get on a plane and find you in Dallas again if you managed to find a flight. Or that I should not come back. That was a joke, right?"

"For sure," I managed, deadpan.

We exited the airport. Clearly 'escape from Louisiana' was not happening by air. I would have taken the bus had it not been for a sneaking suspicion that Ginger would have hopped on as well.

I needed to switch tactics and ditch the ditz.

"You drove here, didn't you Ginger?" I mustered up all the 'friendly warmth' I could into my tone. "You should leave now – I'm guessing the bar prep needs to done for tonight."

"Why, yeah," she answered enthusiastically. Her expression changed to one of bewilderment.

"Hey, wait a minute. Are you trying to pull a fast one on me, Sookie? I can't let you leave, Eric would kill me!"

I inwardly groaned. Now was not the time for her to get a clue.

In the end, I said: "Don't worry, I'm going to get a taxi and go back to Bon Temps. I need to speak to my brother."

To convince herself, Ginger followed me to the taxi rank and listened as I directed the driver to Bon Temps.

I half expected to turn around moments later and find her trailing after the taxi in her own car. But she was not _that _competent a babysitter.

Notwithstanding my ploy to shake off Ginger, I had been telling her the truth. I could have fled back to Dallas while her back was figuratively turned; however, in the end, I did need to speak to Jason.

I found him at his house, sprawled on the couch.

"Jason!"

I nudged him none too gently.

"What the–?!"

He toppled from the couch and looked up at me, bleary eyed.

"Sookie?!"

My face must have said it all.

"Oh fuck. You found out, didn't you?"

"What that my house is not my house?!" I stood over him, hands on hips, trying to intimidate him despite my non-intimidating physical stature.

"That vamp, he was paying top dollar, Sookie! It was just sitting empty. Even when you were still here, you had been living with him."

"And then I wasn't! It didn't strike you as fishy or just fucked up to go ahead and sell it to him?!"

Jason could not maintain eye contact.

"I didn't think it through, Sook," he said, hanging his head. "It was just so much money. It was a few weeks before you took away my power of attorney."

I cursed the day I had sentimentally decided that Jason would act in my best interests. Furthermore, I cursed the reason as to why I had been forced to make that decision.

All paths led back to Eric Northman.

"What did you do with the money?" I asked. Reality was sinking in. My brother would never fully comprehend his wrongdoing.

Jason shrugged sheepishly. "Spent most of it. I needed some new stuff, my truck needed fixing and a few friends needed helpin' out."

"And you bought V," I stated dully.

His guilty face said it all.

"Sorry Sookie. Fuck, I'm real sorry. I didn't think you were coming back – you told me you weren't coming back."

"I did come back, you jerk! I came back to save your no-good ass!" I angrily kicked at an empty bottle of soda with my boot. It rebounded off the wall, spraying the residue from its bottom across what I now noticed to be an extremely expensive 3D LED television. In fact, the house was a mess, but it was newly-furnished with gadgets he would not otherwise be able to afford.

Gran's house. My house. Equivalent to some illegal vampire blood and overpriced electronic goods.

I kicked at the bottle again, with renewed anger.

He flinched. That kick was really meant for him.

I left my brother as he continued to plead for forgiveness. Deep down, I knew I could not disown him entirely, but I was over playing the good, loving sister. I had become tougher of late, less of the bleeding heart and more no-nonsense. Well, I tried to be.

And I would not be running to Jason's aid any time soon.

The taxi from the airport, lured by the promise of a large fare, was waiting for me in the driveway.

"Where to now, miss?" he asked, sneaking curious glances at me in the rearview mirror. No doubt, I looked like a frazzled mess.

"Dallas," I replied.

"Dallas?" The taxi driver choked. "As in _Texas_?"

"That's the one." I settled back in my seat, ready for the road trip.

It was into the afternoon when I pulled up in front of the house.

Alcide, always dependable, stepped outside to greet me.

"That taxi had Louisiana plates," he observed. "I'm guessing it was one hell of a fare."

I smiled wanly.

"I didn't pay for it." Neither did I offer any further explanation. After an enquiring look went unanswered, he did not press for more.

There was no need to tell him about the bank account I had access to. The account that had continued to receive monthly deposits courtesy of Eric Northman even after I had shunned him from my life. The account that had been equally shunned and untouched, amassing a small fortune, until being hit with today's taxi fare.

"You home now for real?" Alcide asked.

"For real," I confirmed, giving him the hug his outstretched arms welcomed.

Perhaps not all paths led back to Eric Northman.

* * *

.

* * *

Yes, I know! This is the boring chapter that 'links' the more interesting stuff. Thank you for continuing to read (/ starting to read?) - I really appreciate anyone who expresses even a slight interest in my story!


	14. Chapter 14

**Note:** I prefer to use True Blood characters in this fan fic. Please do not get technical / read too much into the use of these characters (i.e. seasonal storylines). Unless I specifically allude to canon plot lines, I'm only borrowing names, appearances and personalities etc.

* * *

.

* * *

I woke the next morning with a strange sense of both loss and assertion. My brother a jackass, Gran's house no longer mine and a bunch of people – and vampires – that only meant awkwardness and/or trouble. Bon Temps. Shreveport. Louisiana.

In that sense, bigger than Dallas.

The past couple of weeks had been eventful, but not in a good way. I needed to get back into my safe routine.

Alcide was about to leave for work when I entered the kitchen for breakfast.

"You're up early," he commented.

"Work," I said with my back to him as I searched the refrigerator for juice and milk.

"You're working today?" he queried. "Are you sure you're up for it after having so much time off doing... whatever it is you've been doing?"

I turned back to him with my no-nonsense look. "Yes. I'm picking up things where I left them. The sooner life becomes normal again, the better."

He shrugged, knowing better than to try to talk me out of it. His thoughts were less reserved. I guess he knew I would be listening in on them.

"I can drive you," he ended up offering.

"No, you go," I shooed. "I'll just make you late. I can catch the bus."

Less than an hour later, I was on the bus and glad to be so. As much as I could be overwhelmed by hearing people's thoughts all at once, it was certainly an effective means to stop me over-thinking _my_ thoughts.

I was dropped off at a bus stop out the front of the mall.

Mundane in its well-maintained, upscale manner, the mall was, like public transport, a hive of daytime human activity. I wove through the thin crowd of early morning shoppers until I reached the place I called work.

The pretty blonde behind the counter waved an excited, French-manicured hand at me.

"Sookie, you're back!"

My boss, Sarah Newlin, looked immaculate as usual in her lavender blazer and pencil skirt.

"Hi Sarah. You got my texts? So sorry about being AWOL. Family drama." I rolled my eyes, trying to make light of the situation.

Her expression was reassuring. "Don't worry about it, Sookie. We all have crises that need attending to now and then. I'm just glad I have my star saleswoman back!"

She had taken a risk hiring me, a small-town waitress with no retail experience, to help run her homewares boutique. Back then, I had no idea of the differences between Riedel glassware, the features of Le Creuset cookware or the thread count of Frette linen.

Of course, I had also cheated a bit during my interview by listening in on her mind and rebutting aloud the concerns she had about me... My supernatural ability also was the reason I had quickly become the 'star saleswoman' of the store.

Sarah was genuinely happy to have me back; although, her mind was more focused on the church even she was planning. It was therefore too easy to slip back into work, no questions asked.

I pinned my _Sookie_ name tag to my blouse and went to approach my first customer, a middle-aged woman browsing the napery range.

The day went by quickly. There was a steady stream of customers and new stock for me to get up-to-date with. Sarah left late in the afternoon, and I worked alone until the two night shift girls came to take over.

After the Great Revelation, the mall's opening hours lengthened to accommodate the affluent vampires in the area.

I chose not to work at night.

Notwithstanding this, I remained in the back stock room for quite time after my shift had officially ended in order to retrospectively fill out the leave forms that represented my time away in Louisiana.

It was dark by the time I said goodbye to the girls and left the store. I considered ringing Alcide to ask him to pick me up, but I did not want to push my luck considering I had just returned from the disastrous trip he had disapproved of.

The next bus was not due until well into the next hour.

So I went window shopping.

In my time working at the mall, I had made a few casual friendships amongst the staff from other stores. As such, the Neiman Marcus sales assistant did not mind me trying on a few pairs of Louboutins while being aware that I did not have the money to buy them.

I was admiring my red-soled feet when a shadow fell over me.

"Lovely. They suit you."

I looked up to find a British-sounding man addressing me, or rather, me by way of the shoes. Pale, dark haired and otherwise unremarkable in looks, the one thing that did strike me was my failure to hear his thoughts.

A vampire.

_A British-sounding one?_

"Um, thanks." I turned back to scrutinising my feet, hoping he would get the hint and be on his way. The shadow stayed put.

"Are you here by yourself?"

Alarm bells were figuratively ringing. I reluctantly looked back upwards, making my expression bland.

My voice, on the other hand, was firm. "I'm sorry, but I don't talk to strangers. Thank you."

"That's fine," the man smiled. Creepily. On further inspection, he was unshaven in a scruffy manner, rather than it being a designer stubble-look.

He sat down on a nearby stool and offered me his hand.

"Let's not be strangers then. I'm Franklin. And you are?"

I signalled the sales assistant's attention by wiggling brows in the universal female 'save me from this guy' fashion.

"Is everything all right with the shoes?" she asked, not really meaning the shoes.

"We're fine here," the vampire, Franklin, said, too irritably for comfort.

"Sookie?" the anxious sales assistant unwittingly revealed what I had been trying to conceal.

"Sookie!" Franklin exclaimed, his smile reappearing. "But I must confess that I already had it figured out. It's right here."

To my horror, the hand I had not taken to shake reached out and touched me, tapping the name tag upon my breast. _Sookie_.

"I'm sorry, sir, but I'm helping my customer here if you could excuse us," the sales assistant said valiantly.

She was a slip of a woman, more petite than I, and never going to thwart a vampire.

"I'm talking to my friend, Sookie," he said, "and you're in the way. Please sod off."

The sales assistant looked cowed. I hoped she would at least call security.

"Now Sookie, let's get to know each other better."

Franklin was looking at me with dark, deep-set eyes. He was trying to glamour me. The realisation made my hands tremble. What was I to do? _Pretend_ to be glamoured?

"I need to go," I stammered, breaking eye contact. I kicked off the Louboutins and slipped my feet back into my ballet flats. I was also prepared to go barefoot.

"Where are you going, Sookie?" he crooned. "I want to talk to you."

I refused to look at him as I rushed out into the mall.

"Come on, Sookie. There's nowhere to go unless you're going somewhere with me." He was following me!

I walked faster, trying to blend in with other shoppers. I noticed a group of mall cops near the fountain and headed towards them. I hoped that their pseudo-authoritative presence would deter Franklin.

"A few fat fucks won't get rid of me," he said. My stress levels went into panic mode.

"Please leave me alone!" I had seen the damage that a vampire could cause in the blink of an eye. There were too many people around not to care what happened next.

"Come with me for a little chat and everything will be okay," he threatened.

"Leave her," a new voice interjected. It was low, intense and, at this moment, filled me with automatic relief.

Eric stalked towards us. He was focused on Franklin. His fangs were out.

The two vampires sized each other up.

"I know who you are, Franklin Mott, and I am older and stronger than you. Come near my human again and I will rip your head off and throw it in the pool." Eric's blonde head nodded towards the fountain.

Franklin considered this for what seemed like the longest moment. He then glanced at me, causing Eric to bristle.

Finally, he backed down.

"You see how things are here," Eric said. I was not sure what this meant, but Franklin seemed to.

"So it appears," Franklin agreed. He turned and walked away, somehow melding into the crowd.

"Who was that?" I asked, dumbfounded. "What did he want?"

Eric, forever alert, noticed that we were attracting attention and retracted his fangs.

"Eric? Who was that?" I repeated. Then, dazedly: "Why are you even here?"

He placed a hand on my shoulder and steered me out of the mall.

"I need to think," he said, "so please don't take this the wrong way, but shut up."

Outside, under the bright lights of the entrance, I sucked in a steadying breath.

"I need to know what the hell that was."

He did not answer, his blue eyes faraway. When I had his attention, he looked all too serious. His face was arranged into stern, chiselled lines.

I expected to be lectured on some sort of danger.

Instead, he kissed me.

Hard and fast.

"_You're mine,"_ I heard him murmur.

* * *

.

* * *

As per my profile, I like a _touch_ of melodrama haha-


	15. Chapter 15

_Tonight was the night._

_My body was practically humming as I waited for him to pick me up._

_I was seeing Eric Northman._

_It was hardly a long term relationship yet; however, each time we saw each other, I fell deeper under his spell. It was ironic that the undead could make me feel so alive._

_And yet, increasingly, I also felt restless._

_He had not drunk my blood yet. Nor had we had sex._

_Goodbyes ended with breathtaking kisses and intimate caresses, but nothing further._

_For a vampire with such a reputation as a womanising feeder, Eric only acted towards me with restraint._

"_What are you waiting for?!" I had groaned in frustration the last time, a few nights ago. I was literally shoving my neck into his face. His mouth would trail over it, never piercing my skin despite the fangs that unsheathed every time with hunger. _

_We were backed against the side of my house. His thigh was locked between mine._

"_Not now," he said, in that low, controlled voice._

"_Then when?!" My wantonness would have shocked the prude inside me had I not felt so... desperately wanton. _

_His hands ran over my hips, grabbing my ass to lift me so that I was all but balanced upon his thigh. The friction made me writhe._

"_You're impatient," he observed amusedly._

_I could feel his arousal. There was no doubting that he wanted me. _

"_When, Eric?" I repeated. I did not understand why he held back._

_He laughed softly, gorgeous in the moonlight. _

"_Goodnight Sookie Stackhouse."_

_He kissed me before I could protest. I felt the slice of his fangs in my bottom lip. He sucked the blood from the tiny wound._

"_Cheat," I muttered, without breaking the kiss. "That doesn't count." But my eyes were closed and my back was arched. Everything he did to me drove me crazy, even if it was not _everything.

_I spent that night having a cold shower. _

_It was not until the next night, after my shift at Merlotte's, that I arrived home to find a beribboned dress box upon the porch._

_The small card attached to it was embossed with a single word: _Saturday.

_And now it was Saturday._

_He was late, even though we had never agreed upon a time. It was almost 11 o'clock._

_When I finally heard the purr of his Corvette outside, my entire body tensed. With anticipation._

_He did not bother knocking._

_I opened the door to find him leaning against the railing in a tight black singlet and black waxed jeans. I could have swooned._

"_Hello Sookie."_

_I was surprised at how tremulous my answering smile felt. _

"_Hello."_

_His blue eyes glittered as I crossed the porch to reach him. We kissed in greeting briefly. The slight touch caused me to inhale sharply. My nerves were all over the place._

"_Did you like my gift?"_

_I exhaled._

"_Yes. Thank you."_

"_Was it too 'forward' of me, as you breathers would say?"_

_I blushed, then shook my head._

"_No."_

_We drove in charged silence out of Bon Temps._

_I was disappointed when the car pulled into the parking lot of Fangtasia. We had not been here before on any of our dates, and it was hardly the place I wanted to be _tonight_._

"_Come. This won't take long." He took my hand and led me into the bar. It was busy, loud and still not my scene._

_In the midst of Fangtasia on a Saturday night, he took his place upon the throne-like chair and I sat beside him._

"_What now?" I whispered self-consciously, staring out at the crowd – vampire and human – that mostly stared right back. Eric seemed to be viewed with reverence while I was simply sized-up. Within the crowd, his progeny, the blonde vampire, Pam, stood arms crossed and bored-looking, except for the speculative glint in her eyes._

_Eric had not let go of my hand. His fingers laced through mine._

_I turned to him. Our eyes locked, blind to the crowd as he raised my hand to his mouth._

_His lips pressed against the pulse at my wrist._

_I quivered. He half-smiled._

_I heard whispers from the crowd. I heard gossiping human thoughts._

"_Now everyone knows you're mine," he said._

_I paused to take in the gravity of this._

_He watched me carefully. "No?"_

_I met the intensity of his blue eyes. _

"_Yes."_

_The half-smile reappeared. He rose._

"_We will go now."_

_We had been there for less than 10 minutes._

_Back in the car, I reclined against the leather seat in a sort of ecstatic bewilderment. Sexual desire clearly led to recklessness._

"_Don't over-think it," he advised. As if _he _was the mind reader. Then: "We're here."_

_We passed though an imposing electronic gate._

_From behind the tinted window, I could make out the architectural outline of a house._

"_Your house?"_

_A single nod._

_The garage was internally connected to the house. I was slow to exit the car. A knot of new emotion replaced my bewilderment: part excitement; part nervousness._

_The house was open-plan, contemporary and minimally furnished in a sleek, European style. Being accustomed to homely clutter, Eric's house was foreign, masculine and clearly out of my price range._

"_Nice," I said, laying my palms flat against the white marble countertop of his marble and stainless steel-dominated kitchen. A kitchen I doubted a vampire had much use for._

_Hands touched me from behind, kneading my shoulders. With a low moan I did not think myself capable of, I leant into his touch._

_He slowly undid the concealed zip of my dress. The garment fell to the floor. _

"_I chose well," he murmured. I thought he meant me, but, when I turned to him, he was surveying the wisps of red lace at my breasts and hips._

_When I had discovered expensive lingerie within the dress box left on my porch those couple of nights ago, I had thought of Eric's gift as racy and bold. Now, beneath his blue eyes in Kiki de Montparnasse, I felt vulnerable and desirous._

_My mouth opened as his claimed it. The kiss was slow and tortuously exquisite. My fingers glided over his muscular arms and shoulders before entwining in his long, blonde hair. I clung to him, certain that I never wanted this moment, or the next moments, to end. _

"_This way." He lifted me effortlessly and used vampire speed to scale a hidden flight of stairs. I ended up breaking the kiss to gasp once from the thrill of the whirlwind movement, and again from the relative darkness we were plunged into._

_He lowered me onto something soft. A bed._

_The lingerie was skilfully removed from my body._

"_Sookie." I heard his low, intense voice before my eyes had adjusted._

_He knelt before me. His hand cupped my chin, the thumb tracing the curve of my mouth._

"_You are really beautiful," he said. His voice now took on a quizzical, enthralled note. _

_My breathing was the only other audible noise._

_He shed his clothes quickly. I shivered as his smooth, lean body covered mine. My skin burned hot in contrast to his eternal coolness. _

_His tongue lathed over my breasts and taut nipples; finger sliding along the wetness between my thighs._

"_Do it," I whispered, pressing against him. "I know you want to."_

_He stilled momentarily. I braced myself. _

_"Remember this, Sookie." His head arched backwards before descending upon me. _

_His fangs sunk deep into my neck._


	16. Chapter 16

His fingers wrapped around my braided hair, pulling upon it so that my head tipped backwards. My mouth opened beneath his.

Numbly, I accepted the kiss.

A couple of women wandered past; although, I did not really notice them until one muttered: "So inappropriate!"

Eric inclined his head her way, narrow-eyed. The woman actually squeaked with fear. She and her friend hurried off into the car park.

It brought me back to reality.

"What was _that_?" I exclaimed. I meant Franklin. I meant Eric. I meant _everything_. Our blood bond was playing havoc on my body. Combined with the horror of the Franklin ordeal, I suddenly felt nauseous.

"I need room to breathe," I shuddered.

A human would have been breathing heavily from the near-miss of a fight. Eric Northman was absolutely still. No heart beat rapidly with adrenalin as mine now did.

He let go of me. I took a few moments to recollect my wits. Fortunately, I had made it out of the mall with both shoes and my purse on my shoulder.

"We should leave," he said, monitoring my returning composure. He took my hand and dragged me along with him. When I tried to break the contact, he gripped my wrist.

"Stop it, Eric!" I snapped. "Tell me what's going on! I'm not just going to blindly follow you!"

At this, he picked me up and flung me over his shoulder. Caveman-like.

"_Eric!_" I pummelled his back with my fists, but it was like hitting bricks.

He – we – stopped in front of a sleek, black sedan. It was a car I did not recognise, with unassuming Texan plates.

Vampire speed meant that both he and I were in the car, doors closed, in an instant.

I opened my mouth to give him a piece of my mind, but he pre-empted me.

"Listen, Sookie. Franklin Mott is a psychopathic vampire hiding in the bushes somewhere. He's waiting to get to you again. You _will _let me drive you home."

"I'm capable of finding my own way home," I pointed out.

"By billing me another taxi fare?"

I blinked. He was in his uncompromising sheriff mode, which was not complementary to my stubborn mode. I rubbed a weary hand across my eyes.

"Fine. Just home. Do you know where I live?"

His gaze did not waver. "Of course."

The car exited the mall car park. Admittedly, I peered out into the darkness, trying to spot any skulking figure in the bushes.

Once we were on the highway, I allowed myself to vaguely relax. Well, sort of. I still had the vampire to my left.

"Who is Franklin Mott?" I asked. "Why was he bothering me?"

Eric glanced at me before his eyes settled back on the road.

"He is a private investigator of sorts. He has a proverbial chip on his shoulder, which, combined with the fact he is a vampire, makes him dangerous."

"But what does he want with me?"

Eric grimaced. "Bill Compton has hired him to find out if you truly are mine."

I was surprised by this;maybe even shocked. Remembering the way Franklin had acted towards me at the mall caused a shudder to run down my spine.

"Why would Bill do such a thing?" I gasped. "Especially if Franklin is as psycho as you seem to think he is?!"

Eric did not appear to find this extraordinary. "There are things going on in Louisiana that you are unaware of. Vampire politics is never-ending."

"So? Bill is a king. You're his sheriff – I'm just a nobody all the way in Texas!"

"Do you really think that?" Blue eyes skimmed me, lingering on my neckline.

"I think that things are getting out of hand!"

Eric shrugged. "I doubt that Compton ever got over you, Sookie Stackhouse. Especially when you spurned him for me."

"In no way did I break up with Bill in order to be with you," I clarified irritably. "That was ages ago, anyway."

The conversation ended because the car came to a slow halt.

I had not been paying attention on the drive home. I should have been.

We were parked in front of the Hotel Carmilla. It was not my favourite place in Dallas by any means.

A wide, elegant building, the vampire-friendly hotel was illuminated with red accent lighting.

"This isn't home," I said, instantly suspicious.

A valet approached the car. Eric opened the driver's side door and placed the keys in the outstretched white-gloved hand.

"We have stayed here before," he shrugged, like it was no big deal. "I have the suite you like."

"Really, Eric?" I hissed. "This is _not_ what we agreed upon."

The valet cleared his throat, no doubt hoping we would take the argument elsewhere, so he could get on with his job. His thoughts revealed that the bickering of vampire-human couples was nothing new to him.

"Until I can decide what the best way is to deal with this, you need to be with me." Eric used vampire speed to open my door, smoothly intercepting the valet.

The chivalry was wasted.

"I'll get a taxi from here," I said. I got out of the car, going out of my way to ensure we did not touch.

"Don't be a fool, Sookie." His eyes flashed hot, then cold; finally settling on impassiveness with only a hint of impatience.

"You need protection. I can provide that for you."

"Why does it always seem that I need protection _because of_ _you_?" I wondered aloud, ensuring that my voice was equally cold. I flagged a vacant taxi, but Eric shot the driver a forbidding glare.

His next move was more unexpected.

"I know it's hard," he said softly. "You need to believe me. Franklin Mott poses a serious threat to you. It was a terrible mistake for Bill to put him onto you."

I braced myself at this sudden change of tone. He spoke to me like the Eric he had been before things had messed up. The Eric I would have blindly followed, lemming-like, simply because I thought he was _wonderful_.

"Trust me, Sookie." His head dipped; mouth brushing across my forehead.

But they were the wrong words. Ones I had heard before.

Pain tore through me. He must have felt it via our blood bond. Eric Northman, the Viking warrior vampire, jerked backwards in response.

We stared at each other.

"I'll go inside with you if you sign my house back over to me," I ended up saying, turning my back on memory lane. "Otherwise, I will tell Bill what the real deal is and sort things out myself."

His eyes clouded to a smouldering, smoky blue that would have been sensuous in another context.

"I do not respond well to threats."

I stuck to my guns and was silent. Acknowledging this, his expression turned thoughtful.

"But perhaps we can come to some sort of arrangement."

I inclined my head. The valet had driven off in the car. Eric and I stood on the curb, brokering the next deal in our now-transactional relationship.

"You will stay with me until I can deal with Bill's suspicion and get rid of his crony."

"I will stay with you in Dallas. In this hotel, in separate rooms. During the day, you have no say whatsoever over my life. At night, I promise to be careful, but will not tolerate you being a control freak. And you will sign my house back over to me."

He smiled. The gesture enhanced his handsomeness, but was not gracious. It was more of a predatory sneer.

I decided to cover all my bases before the deal was sealed.

"If this is not sorted out in a week's time, you will sign my house back over to me, but everything else is off."

"A week's time?"

"Yes."

I paused to consider my next words carefully.

"Eric, after a week, if things haven't been sorted out, we must ask Godric for his help."


	17. Chapter 17

I trailed behind him, wondering what the hell I was doing.

The Hotel Carmilla was decorated in a moody, contemporary style aimed at being glamorous. A sophisticated mix of vampires and humans lounged about the lobby. It was like a classier Fangtasia, only the drinks were more expensive. Including the Tru Blood _and_ the human blood.

"Come, I have rooms already," Eric said, pausing so that I caught up to his long stride. We came to a stop at the line of elevators.

The silence created by waiting was not companionable, but neither was it as awkward as it could have been. If anything, I needed the downtime to recollect my wits.

An elevator arrived. Eric entered and leaned casually against one corner. I stood on the other side. The doors began to close, until a hand wedged between them.

My heart leapt into my throat at the chance that Franklin had already tracked me down.

Eric heard my gasp and frowned, shaking his head that no, it was not Mott.

Instead, a man in a too-slick beige leisure suit pushed open the doors and stepped inside. A sequinned dress-wearing woman followed suit. From her thoughts, I gathered that the man was a vampire and she was his O-negative nightcap.

"Howdy," he greeted Eric, recognising a fellow vampire. He had an exaggerated Texan drawl that grated on my already shaken nerves.

Eric stared back coolly, a blonde brow lifting ever so slightly.

The Texan vampire next glanced at me. His sleazy stare swung back to fully check me out.

"The blonde smells amazing," he remarked to Eric. "Can I order her off the menu too?" He slung a rough arm around his companion, who meekly leaned into him. I averted my eyes.

Eric's bland expression did not change, but he shifted his stance to something that was languidly predatory. Body language that only Eric Northman could pull off with such elegance.

The undercurrent of danger was lost on the woman, but I noticed it, and so did the Texan vampire. After this, he solely focused on his companion.

Yet I was still relieved when they exited the elevator upon arrival at their floor.

Eric moved to my side.

"He was no threat to you, Sookie," he murmured. He touched my arm, gently, before letting his hand fall away.

I smarted, as if the cool press of his fingers had burnt me. Our blood bond made me instinctively want him, my brain told me I was crazy.

"I'm just a bit on edge," I found myself saying defensively. "I'm not used to this intrigue-crap anymore."

"You've just been gone for too long." There was another light touch. "You know I will protect you."

I made the mistake of looking up into his eyes. They were a clear, solemn blue that confused me in my hyper-sensitive mood.

The elevator doors opened at the top floor. The moment was over.

Eric exited first, only because he knew where we were headed. I deliberately walked a couple of steps behind him.

"Here's your home away from home," he said, stopping at the end of the hall.

He slid a card into the key slot and opened one of the black lacquered double doors. He held it open so I could enter first. I did so while shooting him a quick, suspicious look.

Inside, I remembered the suite with startling clarity. Before, when we were together, it had indeed been my favourite place to stay in Dallas. The décor had changed, but the bones of the place remained the same.

When Eric also entered, closing the door behind him, I realised that he meant for both of us to stay in the suite. I should have known.

"Um, shouldn't you go down to reception and get another room? We agreed upon separate rooms," I pointed out.

He smiled brilliantly, only heightening my suspicion.

"And these are, Sookie. There's one bedroom here, and one bedroom here." He used vampire speed to flit across the sitting room that separated the two bedrooms. It only served to demonstrate how futile the separation was. And he knew it.

"You can choose which one you want," he added slyly.

"Eric–" I began to protest, but a phone rang, interrupting me.

He retrieved an iPhone from his pocket and answered it.

"Yes?"

There was silence as the caller spoke.

"Oh, Billy," Eric drawled, smoothing back his hair. "This paranoia – it's really quite unbecoming."

I stilled at the realisation that the caller was Bill. Eric merely smirked.

"She's with me now," he said. "We decided to rendezvous here in Dallas. No, it is not impacting upon the investigation. Yes, I am aware of that. I'll be there."

It was frustrating to only hear one side of the conversation. I flopped onto a chaise lounge that was as uncomfortable as it was fancy. Eric watched me, but soon became distracted by the phone call.

It gave me the opportunity to openly study him.

He had not physically changed, despite the haircut. As a vampire, his handsomeness was eternally preserved. Even without our blood bond and history, I would have agreed that he was gorgeous. But had he changed in other ways? I scanned him anxiously, trying to find some impossible clue.

"Fine. Oh, and Bill – keep your minions away from Sookie. She's my concern, not yours." Without waiting for a response, Eric touched the screen to end the call.

"Is that it? Is that all it takes to get rid of Franklin?" I rose from the lounge with a burst of hope.

"Of course not," Eric said. "We need to be certain that Bill actually does call off Franklin, and that Franklin doesn't go rogue now that he's onto you."

"Why would he do that?" I cringed.

"Because he's a psycho vampire. We can test things when we go to the American Vampire League charity ball tomorrow night."

"What?!"

"Tomorrow night is the ball. Bill will be in attendance. Perhaps Franklin also in light of everything. You and I will go."

"Why would we do that?" I frowned. "Why would _I_ do that?"

Eric regarded me patronisingly, as if I was a clueless idiot.

"Despite being concerned for your safety, I will not be spooked into hiding because of some lowly vamp. It is also a good strategic move for us to be seen at such an event by Bill. It can only be confirmation to him."

I wavered at how reasonable he sounded. But we had been to the AVL charity ball before, a couple of years ago. It had been a wonderful time.

"I still don't want to go," I said.

"Help me, help you, Sookie," Eric said coldly.

I slumped back onto the couch, remembering too late that the luxurious jacquard cushioning was rock-hard.

"Damn," I sighed, meaning multiple things.

He interpreted it to only mean my dismay at being here, at being forced into games where I did not know the rules.

"Face it, Sookie, you're mine until we can be 100 per cent sure." Scowling, he turned on heel and walked away from me, into one of the bedrooms. The one that I knew was technically the master and that tiny bit superior to the other.

"Damn," I whispered. Once more meaning multiple things.


End file.
